Sheffield Wednesday reaction to Sheffield United, Josh Windass reveal - 'You can't blame him' | OneFootball

FLW's Sheffield Wednesday expert Patrick McKenna has no hard feeling towards Josh Windass, after he explored a move to Sheffield United in the summer.

Former Sheffield Wednesday striker Josh Windass is still highly-regarded at Hillsborough.

The Owls were in a dire situation before the start of the season, which saw Windass become one of two players to hand in their notice at the financially-troubled club after multiple instances of wages going unpaid.

The 32-year-old would eventually sign for newly-promoted Wrexham, but it's recently been revealed by The Star that his camp held exploratory talks over a cross-city move to Sheffield United, before he joined up with the Red Dragons.

Windass is a cult hero on the blue side of the Steel City, thanks to his crucial contributions throughout his stint at the club, but a move to Bramall Lane would've certainly tainted the reputation he left at Hillsborough.

Wednesdayites have dealt with far too much hurt and heartbreak throughout Dejphon Chansiri's nightmare tenure at the helm of their club, and seeing one of their most popular players in recent years wearing the red and white stripes would've rubbed salt even further into the wounds.

Josh Windass still held in high regard by Sheffield Wednesday despite Sheffield United talks

Following the revelation that Windass explored a move to Bramall Lane in the summer, Football League World spoke to their resident Sheffield Wednesday expert, Patrick McKenna, to see if he felt any differently about the attacker having after learning about this.

Partick responded: "In regard to Josh Windass, I still hold him in high regard.

"Unfortunately, he was put in an untenable situation last summer, and you can't blame him and any other players that did decide to walk away from the club.

"As a player, I do think at times he got unwarranted stick. He got a lot of important goals for us, namely those two goals against Newcastle in the FA Cup, and that goal at Wembley [against Barnsley], which is the most iconic in our history.

"He was a big game player, top goalscorer last season, and I did like him as a player, and it never bothered me that he wouldn't celebrate goals in League One. Some people thought he was arrogant. No, he can celebrate however he likes.

"At the end of the day, we do have to remember that Josh is a professional footballer and not a fan. He has a family to earn money for and a career that continues, so he really has to look at all avenues.

"If Sheffield United were willing to sign him — give him regular football, then you can't blame him if he was interested in that, because it would've meant that he didn't have to uproot his family," Patrick concluded.

Sheffield Wednesday left relieved that Windass' Sheffield United move failed to materialise

Patrick also shared with us his relief that Windass didn't move to the Blades, as he felt the former Wednesday striker wouldn't have been able to resist a wind-up had he scored against his old club.

He said: "I still hold Windass in regard. No doubt if he had moved to Bramall Lane, you'd have put any money on him scoring against us this season, and I'm sure he would've gone into full wind-up mode.

"Ultimately, that's just football banter, and you can't take that too seriously. You give it out and you take it back.

"I hope he continues to push on at Wrexham and maybe get promotion this season."

It's understandable there's some relief from Patrick, as Sheffield Wednesday's Championship campaign has been absolutely miserable from start to finish, and seeing a cult hero score for your biggest rivals against you would've been a cruel twist of fate.

All-in-all though, it's fair to say that the big reveal of Windass' contact with Sheffield United in the summer isn't enough to taint the excellent reputation he left at Hillsborough in the eyes of some fans.