Sheffield Wednesday's Henrik Pedersen explains his Owls changes
Sheffield Wednesday have held talks with Manchester United over the plans for Harry Amass’ future beyond January.
The exciting England youth international scored his first goal in senior football in Wednesday’s defeat at Southampton at the weekend, seeing a couple of Saints defenders before rocketing the ball past Gavin Bazunu to bring his side back into the game with a finish of real quality.
Amass has shown excellent form in recent weeks and has expressed an enjoyment in playing for Pedersen’s side, with his parent club believed to be keeping a close eye on his progress at S6. As reported by The Star at the time of his signing, a break clause is included in a loan deal that amid recruitment restrictions was sanctioned by the EFL only on the basis that Manchester United would cover all costs associated with the loan.
Wednesday have been stung by the recall of important loan players in recent seasons, with Shea Charles being the latest example before the terms of his temporary deal from Southampton were renegotiated. It could stand to reason that if the Owls the subject of a takeover by the new year - as is expected - the terms of Amass’ loan stint could be realigned.
Asked on where things are at with the 18-year-old’s future at Hillsborough, Henrik Pedersen told The Star: “I spoke with Kevin (Beadell, recruitment manager). Today we have been in Manchester to have a meeting with them about this situation for the future. I think we should have this back in the next two or three weeks when we speak about the development from Harry and what it could look like after Christmas.”
TOP PERFORMERS: Barry Bannan and Harry Amass (Image: Steve Ellis)placeholder image
TOP PERFORMERS: Barry Bannan and Harry Amass (Image: Steve Ellis)
It’s understood that Manchester United picked out Wednesday as a good home for Amass due to the likelihood of a good run of playing time and trusted Pedersen with his improvement as a player, with a focus placed on an upturn in his defensive capability. The Owls boss sees vast improvements in the former Watford youngster both as a footballer and as a young professional and expressed his keenness to retain Amass for the remainder of the season.
“The young man who came into Sheffield Wednesday and the young man who just left the stadium today are two different humans - and they are two different players,” Pedersen said. “His progression has been amazing and for a young player like Harry, he came with a lot of energy, but then the Championship always come knocking with three games in a row. It is tough, but he keeps on playing.
“This week against West Brom, against Norwich, against Southampton, he showed against three good teams that he can compete with them. It's not only that he can compete, but he can be dominant in some phases. So I think he has done a big development as a player and what I see is a young man who has started to have a big knowledge about himself as a human; who he wants to be, who he doesn't want to be.
“He has started to control when his mood comes down to be more stable. I see a young guy who has started to be physically stronger. He runs more, he has started to sprint more, he has more accelerations and he starts to have smaller breaks in the game. He has started to be better between the phases of the game. I like him. He is a good boy, he is a good player and he loves to learn. We love to have him here.”
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