Sheffield Wednesday beat Leeds United to £3m deal - Owls were laughing loudest | OneFootball

Sheffield Wednesday would have been delighted to strike a key transfer agreement ahead of Leeds, which proved to be a real success for all involved.

Sheffield Wednesday have had their fair share of signings that have been hit or miss, with some standing out more than others.

It's been a tough time to be a Sheffield Wednesday fan in recent years, with Dejphon Chansiri's dismal spell as owner of the club causing many off-field problems.

Chansiri eventually placed the Owls into administration, bringing an end to a hugely frustrating spell for the Hillsborough faithful to have to try and deal with.

Transfer restrictions are still in place for Sheffield Wednesday, and any prospective new owner will have to recruit smartly over the summer.

The Owls are preparing for life in League One, after their relegation from the Championship was confirmed earlier this year, although the writing was on the wall months ago, with points deductions wreaking havoc on their 2025/26 league campaign.

However, one player that will be fondly remembered by Sheffield Wednesday supporters for their contributions to the club whilst in the Championship over a five-year spell is Fernando Forestieri, who enjoyed some of his best football at Hillsborough.

Sheffield Wednesday beat Leeds United to Fernando Forestieri

Forestieri made a name for himself in English football whilst with Watford, with the forward netting 21 goals, and being on hand to provide 23 assists for his Watford teammates in his 92 appearances for the club.

He played his part in the promotion-winning campaign in the 2014/15 season, and although he struggled for game time with the Hornets in the top-flight, he still attracted transfer interest from other clubs.

Two of the clubs that were rumoured to be keen on a deal to sign Forestieri were Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds United, both of whom would have thought they would be able to sell the move to the former Italian youth international.

Leeds were originally the favourites to strike a deal with Watford for Forestieri's services, with a fee of £3million being quoted on any potential agreement.

However, Forestieri was believed to have not been too keen on a move to Elland Road, and Sheffield Wednesday took advantage of the player stalling on a move to Leeds.

The Owls submitted a bid of their own late into that transfer window, and seemingly caught the eye of the forward, who signed along the dotted line before the deadline.

Fernando Forestieri's impressive record with the Owls

A signing for a seven-figure fee is always going to come with a weight of expectation on the player, but Forestieri seemingly relished that at Sheffield Wednesday, and he became a firm fan favourite in his time with the club.

He went on to make 134 appearances for Sheffield Wednesday, and 40 goals across a five-year spell with the Owls. That impressive record in front of goal, and his eye-catching technical ability on the ball was there for all to see, and Leeds certainly would have been frustrated not to have got a deal for Forestieri over the line at the time.

Forestieri finished as Sheffield Wednesday's top goalscorer in his first two seasons with the club, where they also finished in the play-off positions in the Championship - albeit without winning promotion on both occasions, whereas Leeds were left frustrated in mid-table in the second tier.

Leeds also had some strong attacking options in their squad with Chris Wood spearheading their attack, and you would like to think that if Forestieri had linked up with him in attack at Elland Road, then the Whites would have returned to the top-flight a lot sooner than they originally did.

Of course, both Sheffield Wednesday and Leeds United have gone in completely different directions nowadays, with Leeds playing their football in the Premier League, whilst the Owls will be preparing for life in League One, after off-field issues caused on-field problems, but it's safe to say that Sheffield Wednesday had the last laugh on this particular transfer deal.