Where AI thinks Sheffield Wednesday would finish if Carlos Carvalhal replaced Henrik Pedersen | OneFootball

Football League World has taken a look at where AI predicts Sheffield Wednesday to finish in League One if Carlos Carvalhal replaced Henrik Pedersen

It's difficult to ascertain precisely what the 2026/27 League One campaign will have in store for Sheffield Wednesday, who are returning to the division for the first time in three years but find themselves doing so to kick-start a new and optimistic era after Arise Capital Partners' long-awaited purchase of the club.

A tumultuous season in the Championship was written off before a ball was even kicked in anger, and unsurprisingly resulted in a historically-miserable relegation as crises piled on at Hillsborough owing to the actions of now ex-owner Dejphon Chansiri.

Led with a makeshift young squad by Henrik Pedersen, the Owls became the earliest team to suffer demotion in EFL history and only managed to reach zero points on the final day following a litany of deductions throughout the season.

But now, with the David Storch-led takeover of Arise having been sealed and confirmed some weeks ago, Wednesday are finally looking towards a new and prosperous chapter. It's one that will, of course, begin in League One as the Owls simply bid to steady the ship and rebuild, with numerous significant situations and dilemmas both on and off-the-pitch to be addressed throughout the summer months.

One matter that has divided Wednesdayites is the future of Pedersen, who stepped up following Danny Rohl's departure to inherit a first senior managerial role at Hillsborough and, though many sympathise with the Dane against the backdrop of such perilous and destabilising circumstances in 25/26, certain supporters hope that the club can turn over a new leave and recruit fresh managerial nous to the dugout in order to oversee the steep rebuilding process in this corner of the Steel City.

For now, at least, Pedersen's tenure feels safe, but there can be no guarantees that Storch won't opt for a change in personnel before the season commences in August, and with popular former boss Carlos Carvalhal having recently refused to rule out an eventual return to the club when speaking to The Star, it had Football League World thinking - what could the 26/27 third-tier campaign look like for the Owls with the Portuguese chief back in situ?

Carvalhal himself reviews Pedersen's work to date as positive in light of the context, and there's absolutely nothing to indicate he'll be on his way back to S6 anytime soon. However, if the 60-year-old was to return to Wednesday to help re-launch the Owls' new era, what exactly could happen?

FLW has enlisted the help of AI-based chatbot, ChatGPT, to explore such a possibility and take one look into a hypothetical future...

Where AI thinks Sheffield Wednesday would finish in League One under Carlos Carvalhal

Carvalhal is fondly remembered as one of Wednesday's most successful managerial appointments in recent history, having guided the club to successive play-off campaigns with sixth and fourth-placed finishes in his first two seasons.

Wednesday ultimately fell short of achieving promotion and Carvalhal left mid-way through what turned out to be a much-less prosperous 2017/18 term, and the rot began to set in soon after under Chansiri.

If Carvalhal was to return to Wednesday after nearly a decade, though, following a globe-trotting career path including stints with Swansea City, Rio Ave, Braga, Al Wahda, Celta Vigo, Olympiacos, then AI predicts that a real promotion push in the third-tier would be on the horizon, tipping a respetable fifth-placed finish to play out in this event.

It's AI's view that a pursuit of automatic promotion could be too optimistic at this moment in time. As it rightly notes, a likely summer squad overhaul, numerous anticipated departures and the remaining financial knock-on effects from the ruinious end to Chansiri's reign, which saw Wednesday plunge into administration upon his exit, means that even a strong and highly-experienced coach like Carvalhal can't instantly erase the wider consequences and difficulties.

AI also points out the pressure of being among League One's largest clubs, although Wednesday have coped with that rather well in the past and, it's predicted that the Owls could even finish anywhere between second and fourth placed with "an excellent transfer window" - which would require the third-tier newcomers to be extremely shrewd and savvy under tight constraints in the market.

The reasons why Wednesday have been hypothetically predicted to record a higher finish under Carvalhal than Pedersen, however, are explained to stem from the ex-Swansea manager's ability to quickly build confidence and momentum, create a strong connection with supporters - which he most certainly did at Hillsborough - while organising teams effectively in possession and handling expectations and pressures at a big club like the Owls.

It's added that the decreased tactical demands of League One, which often favours physicality and organisation barring a few notable exceptions, would be perfectly suited to a manager whose "strengths lie in man-management and creating momentum."

Where Ai thinks Sheffield Wednesday would finish higher in League One under Henrik Pedersen - not Carlos Carvalhal

AI's prediction is a justified one, backed up by undeniable truths regarding Carvalhal's managerial acumen and the qualities he displayed during his memorable stay in South Yorkshire.

But, where exactly does AI believe that Wednesday would fare so much better under Pedersen as opposed to Carvalhal? Well, assuming that Pedersen will be staying on to start the Owls' latest chapter, AI predicts that the club could finish in a more modest position between eighth and 11th place.

That's nothing to be sniffed at considering the volume of turmoil that Wednesday have been through in recent memory, of course. Pedersen, meanwhile, has done himself no harm by showcasing impressive loyalty, leadership, dedication and an ability to platform young talent throughout such a testing era, and many believe that he's earned the chance to lead Wednesday under better circumstances.

However, there are some things that Pedersen simply can't do, and AI has noted the differences between the two in how Carvalhal could attract bigger crowds, a stronger atmosphere, more positivity around recruitment - perhaps more sufficient transfer pull - and even greater patience when the going gets tough.

It's hard to disagree with the notion that Wednesday's ambitions of competing for an instant return to the Championship would be better-served under Carvalhal's expertise, but while supporters will always retain dreams of his eventual comeback at Hillsborough, it's not going to happen quite just yet and all signs point towards Pedersen keeping his position.

Nonetheless, it is interesting to look at what the immediate future would potentially look like with Carvalhal back in familiar surroundings - even if that scenario is much more likely to play out further ahead instead of right now.