Sheffield Wednesday drop big Barry Bannan & Liam Cooper hints | OneFootball

Sheffield Wednesday duo Liam Cooper and Barry Bannan were seen in their new squad numbers for the 2026/27 season.

Sheffield Wednesday have had a productive start to what will be a hectic transfer window as they prepare for life back in League One.

Whilst there is disappointment that the Owls are back in the third tier, the reality is relegation was inevitable due to the mismanagement under former Dejphon Chansiri, which left them in administration and fearing for the future of the club.

Pleasingly, Arise Capital Partners completed their takeover of Sheffield Wednesday, but they recognise that a lot of work is required to make the club competitive moving forward.

There has been positive work on that front in recent weeks, with Billy Mitchell, Callum Slattery and Louie Barry among the many new faces to arrive.

Liam Cooper’s and Barry Bannan’s Sheffield Wednesday squad numbers shared

However, the most eye-catching deal this summer has been the return of Barry Bannan, with the former captain rejoining just six months after leaving Hillsborough for Millwall.

As well as that, Liam Cooper is another player who has put pen to paper on a new contract with the Owls, as the centre-back signed a one-year extension last summer.

And, it appears the duo could be set for prominent roles, as Wednesday shared images on social media that showed the squad numbers the pair have taken.

In Cooper’s case, the centre-back has moved from 16 to 6, which is a number he has worn regularly over the years, including during his successful time at Leeds United.

Meanwhile, Bannan was Wednesday’s number ten for years, and he is unsurprisingly set to take the number he vacated when he left for the Lions.

Liam Cooper and Barry Bannan will have key roles to play at Sheffield Wednesday for Henrik Pedersen

We often see players get new numbers ahead of the season, and you can sometimes read too much into these things, but it does show that Cooper and Bannan will be influential figures.

Of course, in the case of Bannan, that’s not much of a surprise. He was the Owls’ inspirational leader of the years.

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He is a link between the fans and the club, and he will understand how important it is to get everyone pulling in the same direction, which comes from setting standards in training on a day-to-day basis.

Even though Cooper doesn’t have the same connection with Wednesday, he is clearly a player that Pedersen trusts, and, like Bannan, you would expect him to be a vocal player in the dressing room.

Cooper was captain at Leeds, and, given his experience in the game, he has seen a lot, so he will be another that can help set standards.

There is going to be a massive turnover of players at Hillsborough this summer, so it’s vital that Wednesday have some senior players that can run the dressing room for Pedersen, and help implement his ideas on the pitch.

Cooper and Bannan were always going to be big players, and the squad numbers suggest Pedersen recognises that, and they will hope to be crucial in helping Sheffield Wednesday return to the Championship at the first attempt.