What Barry Bannan really thinks of Henrik Pedersen as Sheffield Wednesday return talk swirls | OneFootball

The Owls' legend believes that Henrik Pedersen will prove his doubters wrong next season

There's plenty of optimism at Sheffield Wednesday heading into the new season under the Arise ownership, but there's still a slight question mark about the capabilities of head coach Henrik Pedersen.

The Danish boss had the unenviable task last season of leading Wednesday through one of the most difficult periods in the club's history, stepping up from assistant to head coach last July, after Danny Rohl left.

Dejphon Chansiri's final few months as Owls owner saw the club stripped of its playing assets, and the six months of administration that followed his eventual departure last October weren't plain sailing, either.

That resulted in Sheffield Wednesday winning just twice in the Championship last season, the second of which came on the final day, following the Arise takeover being announced. Overall, he won just four of his 50 games in all competitions.

Regardless of the circumstances, which saw the Owls forced to integrate inexperienced youngsters into the starting eleven early throughout the campaign, some critics believed that Wednesday should have had enough about them to earn more than just 18 points last year.

Therefore, with the new ownership group laying down the foundations to hit the ground running back in League One in August, there have been some wondering if a new head coach would be hired to take them into the new era.

Barry Bannan offers support to Henrik Pedersen ahead of the new season

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Nevertheless, it looks like David Storch and co are placing their faith in Pedersen to be the man to oversee the upcoming third-tier campaign.

Despite some criticism, the Dane was also praised for being able to remain motivated in such difficult circumstances. That praise came from reporters and pundits, but also from his players, too.

Indeed, Sheffield Wednesday legend Barry Bannan is confident that Pedersen can be the right head coach to engineer a successful year back in League One, which should hopefully kickstart a rebuild at Hillsborough under the Arise ownership.

"He deserves it. He's an incredible human being, first and foremost, and he's got a lovely family as well," Bannan told the Sheffield Star. "He also took the city to heart straight away. He's brought into the culture of the city.

"We look at him as a manager, but he goes out of his way to learn about the club from years and years ago. He knows all the ex-players, he's close with all the ex-players, and he's really invested in this club, and it's part of his family as well.

"He deserves a chance next season because last season wasn't a true reflection of the manager that he is. The team was short in a lot of places. A lot of young kids came in and did really well, but in an ideal world, we wouldn't have needed those young kids as much as we did. They were still developing, and they were getting thrown into the pressure cooker, really."

Taking charge of a club throughout administration is an incredibly tiresome task. Bannan feels that, with some stability finally at Sheffield Wednesday for the first time in a while, Owls fans can finally look forward to seeing what a Henrik Pedersen side truly looks like.

"I think Henrik was doing a lot more last season than just concentrating on what he's paid to do, and that's managing," he continued. "I think now, with the right structure behind him, you'll see the real Henrik Pedersen.

"I think you'll see how good a manager he is. He definitely deserves it because of the loyalty [he has shown], the time he stepped in and took it on his shoulders, fought for the club, fought to bring the players in on loan, fought for the staff and got it. I think he'll just go from strength to strength next season."

"It would have been easy to roll over and play the victim [last season], but he was brilliant at keeping everyone going. A lot of results didn't go their way, but a lot of the performances were really good, and they were in a lot of games last season.

"The job he did to keep the mental side of the changing room going was amazing. He's a top coach as well. I think he'll do an amazing job for the club."

Sheffield Wednesday will hope for a Henrik Pedersen, Barry Bannan reunion this summer

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Bannan also told the Star how great his relationship with Henrik Pedersen is, both on and off the field, outlining that their families are close as well from their time together at Sheffield Wednesday.

Owls fans will be hoping that their relationship can recommence in a working capacity this summer, as the 36-year-old continues to be linked with a return to Hillsborough, where he spent ten-and-a-half years before he left for Millwall in January, amidst uncertainty around the future of the club during administration.

Bannan continues to speak glowingly of Wednesday, stating last week that it is "where he belongs." And with Alex Neil's side improving in the engine room with the signing of Jenson Metcalfe, the Scotsman's exit from the Den seems more and more inevitable.

Negotiations have seemingly been ongoing for weeks regarding a return to Hillsborough for one of its modern-day legends. If and when it's confirmed, it would be well worth the wait for the Wednesday fanbase.