"The bottom line" - Josh Windass on choosing Sheffield Wednesday amid West Brom, Derby County links | OneFootball

Josh Windass has spoken about his decision to stay at Sheffield Wednesday.

Sheffield Wednesday forward Josh Windass has opened up about Danny Rohl's impact on his decision to stay at Hillsborough amid links to Derby County, West Bromwich Albion, and others.

Windass agreed fresh terms with the Owls after being linked with a free transfer move to a number of Championship clubs, including West Brom and Derby.

He scored the winning goal at Wembley against Barnsley in the League One play-off final at the end of the 2022/23 season to ensure that Sheffield Wednesday would make their return to the Championship.

The 30-year-old scored six goals in the second tier last season as Wednesday avoided an immediate relegation back to League One, under the highly impressive management of Rohl.

Josh Windass on his decision to stay at Sheffield Wednesday

Windass has decided to extend his stay at Sheffield Wednesday, where he has been for four-and-a-half years, since initially signing on loan from Wigan Athletic in January 2020.

He has made 135 appearances in all competitions for the Owls and will now be preparing to increase that number during the 2024/25 campaign.

BBC Sheffield's senior sports journalist Rob Staton interviewed the attacker at St George's Park, where he talked about his decision to sign a new deal this summer.

Quizzed about his summer, Windass said: "It was fine, I just kept training every day and just plugging away. Wherever I was going to end up, I was always going to make sure I was ready and, obviously, I spoke to Danny (Rohl) towards the end before it got sorted and finally came back.

"Obviously, there is loads of stuff behind the scenes, and you see stuff online, he is being greedy, he's this and that, but the bottom line is a lot of stuff had to be sorted out.

"Finally, Danny managed to, to be honest, Danny made a big case to bring me back so, yeah, I'm really pleased."

Josh Windass explains the influence of Danny Rohl

There is no doubt that Windass had options this summer, and he admitted that even he thought he might be moving on around a week before it was announced he had signed a new contract.

The player himself touched on the manager being a key factor that led to him renewing his deal at Hillsborough during the interview.

"Obviously, I love the club anyway." said Windass.

"Since I've been here I feel like the fans have enjoyed watching me play, I've loved playing here, and now I've probably got the best manager I've ever had, so to leave would have been a big mistake on my part, I think."

Rohl took the managerial role at Hillsborough last season after the Owls had picked up just three points from their first 11 Championship fixtures. They finished the season three points above the bottom three, ensuring that they will play Championship football again next season.

The impact that the German manager had on the pitch was clear to see, but Windass' comments suggest that he also made a real difference off it.

Rohl will be delighted that Windass holds him in such high regard, and will hope that the forward can help his team carry their momentum into next season.

Windass chose to stay at Sheffield Wednesday over the likes of West Brom and Derby, and supporters of the Owls will hope he can hit the ground running in August.