Which 3 League One sides should be ready to act on senior Sheffield Wednesday player's Hillsborough exit | OneFootball

We looked at three League One clubs that should target Marvin Johnson after his departure from Sheffield Wednesday.

Winger Marvin Johnson is on the hunt for a new club after being released by Sheffield Wednesday at the end of his contract this summer.

Johnson joined Wednesday on a free transfer from Middlesbrough in the summer of 2021, and he was part of the squad that won a dramatic promotion from League One via the play-offs in the 2022-23 season.

It was not all plain sailing for Johnson at Hillsborough, and he initially found himself frozen out after the Owls' return to the Championship following a fallout with Xisco Munoz, but he played an important role in helping the club establish themselves in the division after being brought back into the fold by Danny Rohl.

The 34-year-old was a regular for Wednesday last season, providing three assists in 44 appearances in all competitions, but the cash-strapped club decided against offering him a new contract this summer, meaning that his four-year stay in South Yorkshire has now come to an end.

According to journalist Mike McGrath, Johnson is attracting interest from the Championship and League One after becoming a free agent, and we looked at three clubs from the third tier who should have him on their radar.

Cardiff City

After suffering relegation from the Championship last season, Cardiff City are preparing for life in League One, and they appointed highly-rated Leicester City assistant manager Brian Barry-Murphy as their new head coach this week.

Of course, Barry-Murphy will be keen to keep hold of his star players, but that is not always possible after relegation, and it has been claimed that Callum O'Dowda is the subject of interest from former club Oxford United, as well as Hull City.

Like Johnson, O'Dowda is a winger who has been deployed at left-back in recent years, so the ex-Wednesday man could be the perfect replacement for the 30-year-old if he was to depart.

Given his past as an academy coach at Manchester City, Barry-Murphy could prioritise bringing in younger talent this summer, but a player of Johnson's quality with previous League One promotion experience could be invaluable as the Irishman looks to instill a winning mentality in his new squad.

Luton Town

Luton Town are another club who dropped out of the Championship last season, and it was particularly devastating for the Hatters as it was their second consecutive relegation.

As FLW exclusively revealed earlier this month, wing-back Alfie Doughty is attracting interest from several overseas clubs following his side's relegation, and manager Matt Bloomfield may soon need to begin the search for a replacement for the 25-year-old, which could lead him to Johnson.

Johnson is now entering the latter stages of his career, meaning he does not possess as much pace or the ability to bomb forward as he used to, and that could be a problem if Bloomfield decides to employ a wing-back system next season.

However, as shown by the impressive number of assists he registered for Wednesday, Johnson can still deliver incredibly dangerous crosses into the box, and he may be capable of providing strong service to Luton's big target men, including Carlton Morris, Elijah Adebayo and Lasse Nordas.

Leyton Orient

After their agonising play-off final defeat against Charlton Athletic last season, another team who will be hoping to challenge for promotion from League One next term alongside Cardiff and Luton is Leyton Orient.

The O's may be set to tie manager Richie Wellens down to a new and improved contract, but their talented group of loanees have now returned to their parent clubs, including defender Jack Currie, who provided two assists in 45 appearances last season after making the temporary move from Oxford.

It seems highly unlikely that Orient will be able to bring Currie back for a second spell next season, meaning the club will need to bring in a replacement at left-back this summer, and Johnson could be the ideal candidate.

Johnson may be slightly above the age profile that the O's usually target, but they may decide that more experience is needed to help them get over the line in their pursuit of promotion, and after Wellens bemoaned the constant loss of players each summer when their loans expire, he would be a permanent signing who could become a fixture in the team for the next few years.