Sheffield Wednesday told to "stay away" from signing ex-Bolton Wanderers star | OneFootball

FLW's Sheffield Wednesday fan pundit has given his verdict on the club's interest in Ricardo Santos

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Ricardo Santos has emerged as a potential transfer option for Sheffield Wednesday this summer.

It has been exclusively revealed by FLW that the Owls have made a contract offer to the defender following his release from Bolton Wanderers.

The centre-back is also receiving interest from Swansea City, meaning a move to the Championship could be on the cards after departing the Whites.

Santos made just 25 appearances in the league last season, struggling for fitness, with Bolton coming eighth in the table.

Sheffield Wednesday urged to avoid Ricardo Santos

When asked about the prospect of signing Santos, FLW’s Sheffield Wednesday fan pundit Patrick McKenna urged the club to avoid the move.

He feels the player isn’t good enough for a Championship level, and that bringing him in would be an ominous start to their summer transfer plans.

“That is a name that we should definitely stay away from and he would not add anything to our team,” McKenna told Football League World.

“We are in a position where we do need to recruit more centre-backs, that has been a key area which has been neglected.

“But we want to improve and Ricardo Santos would offer no improvement whatsoever.

“He has had injuries for the past few months, had his captaincy stripped off him and any pace he did have has been lost.

“He played in League One last season, not really hitting form, so where is the logic in us, as a Championship team, looking to bring into our defence? I do note that the free agent list was quite depressing, and someone like Ricardo Santos would be another example of this.

“So, yes I know we mightn’t have a massive budget as it stands, but we’ve got to be clever with your signings and you have to identify a player you can see would improve a team, and Ricardo Santos would be a downgrade on Michael Ihiekwe, so I really hope it’s not a signing we would pursue.

“Because, if it was, it would be a very poor start to a transfer window, and I believe it would send an ominous message that this is the category of players we would be going for.”

Sheffield Wednesday finished 12th in the Championship last season under Danny Rohl.

Ricardo Santos deal wouldn’t be smart from Sheffield Wednesday

Sheffield Wednesday lack resources at the moment, but still need to find ways to improve the squad.

However, signing just about anyone doesn’t equate to improving the squad, and they may be better off not bringing in the ex-Bolton player even if it meant nobody coming in at all.

Given his injury issues and the fact that League One side Bolton have ended his time at the club, it’s not the most encouraging start to the window for the Yorkshire outfit to be chasing his signature.

The club need to be making moves that can help convince Danny Rohl to stick around, but so far it’s understandable why he might want to move on if there won’t be real room to improve the team this transfer window.