What Henrik Pedersen has said about his Sheffield Wednesday future as takeover looms | OneFootball

The Owls boss could face an uncertain future at Hillsborough once a takeover of the club is completed.

Sheffield Wednesday are hoping to complete a takeover of the club in the coming weeks, but what comes after that for people like Owls boss Henrik Pedersen is unclear.

The administrators appointed by Dejphon Chansiri, Begbies Traynor, have reportedly set a 'soft deadline' of Friday 21 November for interested parties to make themselves known.

As revealed by The Star, it's then understood that a two-week negotiation period will commence, from which the administrators hope to choose their preferred bidder on 5 December.

So, for Sheffield Wednesday fans, the concrete end of Chansiri's rule and the beginning of a fresh and exciting new era looks set to start very soon.

However, whilst Owls fans will get their answer on who their new owner(s) will be, what may still be left unresolved and perhaps thrown into even more doubt once the takeover is completed, is the future of current first-team manager, Henrik Pedersen.

"I'm proud of what we're doing" - Henrik Pedersen drops claim on his Sheffield Wednesday future post-takeover

When new owners buy football clubs, they can often be keen to put their stamp on things as quickly as possible, as they look to ensure that they are delivering on promises and being seen to be investing in the club they've purchased.

That can mean removing links to the previous regime, and that can mean that managers, justifiably or not, can lose their jobs.

As such, once the takeover of Sheffield Wednesday goes through, question marks over Pedersen's long-term future in the Hillsborough dugout will naturally start to be asked, but how does he feel about his situation?

Speaking on Football Heaven via The Star, Pedersen said: "Firstly, I’m really looking forward to the new owners coming.

"I think what we’re doing right now, there is a lot of culture in it. I’m proud of what we’re doing all together, because nobody can do something alone. And I can’t do things alone, I have a strong team around me - some good coaches and staff.

"And we have a special player group. There are not many of us, but they have the heart of the Premier League. But let’s see what happens here. I would love to stay in this club, I’d love to stay for many years and take this club further ahead. And bring it back to a good period."

Sheffield Wednesday fans will surely love to see Henrik Pedersen remain in charge post-takeover

Arriving at Hillsborough in October 2023 as Danny Rohl's assistant manager, Pedersen stepped out of the relative shadows that role brings and firmly into the Sheffield Wednesday spotlight this summer.

Named as the club's new manager at the end of July, the 47-year-old knew the size of the task he was taking on, with a host of players exiting the club, players and staff alike going unpaid for months, legal issues arising with both HMRC and the temporary closure of Hillsborough's North Stand due to fears over fan safety and a 12-point deduction; anything that could've been thrown at him has been so far.

However, despite all of that, the Dane has taken it all in his stride, and hasn't for one moment appeared flustered or not in control of the only things that he and his players can.

With a squad that is threadbare of proven and senior players, and having to lean heavily on academy talents who have all stepped up with remarkable levels of maturity and readiness, Pedersen has already instilled a, 'if we're going down, we're going down fighting' mentality at the club, which the fans have absolutely got on board with.

Indeed, amid numerous protests against Chansiri, Owls supporters have not turned their frustrations towards the team, with everyone connected with the club now clearly pulling in the same direction, and Wednesday now really has that 'us against the world' feel about them.

Ahead of the Steel City derby clash with Sheffield United this weekend, Pedersen has been able to muster one win and five draws from his side's opening 15 games of the campaign, which if you take away their 12-point deduction, would've seen them sitting in a position to leapfrog the Blades in the table this weekend with a win.

That paints a clear picture as to just how good a job Pedersen is doing and how competitive he's been able to keep his side in games this season given the circumstances, with his Owls side currently having scored one more league goal (12) than Chris Wilder's men this season (11).

Therefore, given all the above reasons, Wednesday fans will surely hope that new ownership doesn't bring about swift managerial change, as given fresh and long-awaited financial backing in the summer, he could well be the man to pave the way in the early days of the club's road to recovery.