"Like for like" - Sheffield Wednesday target Sory Kaba backed as Ike Ugbo replacement | OneFootball

The Owls are one of a number of Championship clubs said to be in the running for the Las Palmas striker

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…

Sheffield Wednesday are one of a number of Championship clubs interested in Las Palmas forward Sory Kaba this summer, with West Bromwich Albion and Cardiff City also said to be keen.

The Spanish side are said to have accepted a £1.3 million bid from an unnamed second-tier side this summer, with the striker free to leave the club having joined from FC Midtjylland just last year.

Wednesday’s interest in the Guinean follows the news that Ligue 1 side Troyes have put a £4.5 million price tag on last season’s loanee Ike Ugbo this summer, which will have been a setback in their hopes of signing the attacker on a permanent basis.

With Kaba coming at a cut-price fee in comparison, we speak to Football League World’s Sheffield Wednesday fan pundit Patrick McKenna about a potential deal for the 29-year-old.

Sory Kaba can add experience to Sheffield Wednesday frontline as Ike Ugbo replacement

Kaba will be well known to Football League fans after his stint with Cardiff City in the 22/23 campaign, as he netted eight times in 17 appearances for the Bluebirds during the second half of that season.

That form has yet to resurface since his last time in England, with just one goal in 17 matches during his time in Spain, after his reported €3 million move from Denmark 12 months ago.

Despite his recent struggles, his time in Wales offered proof that he could offer a similar threat to Ugbo - who offered a return of seven goals in 18 games earlier in the year at Hillsborough - and McKenna would be pleased if the Owls made him theirs.

The Wednesday fan said: “I think Kaba would be a positive signing and would be a perfectly good replacement for Ugbo.

“If you look over his career, he has got goals across a number of different leagues, in the Danish league and the Belgian league, similar to Ugbo.

“I think if you’re really looking for a comparison, they both had loan spells at Cardiff and actually Kaba did better, with his record of eight goals in 17 games mirrors what Ugbo did at Hillsborough.

“If Kaba can replicate that with Sheffield Wednesday it’s a like for like replacement for Ugbo, and that’s coming at £1.3 million, compared to what we were rumoured to be paying for Ugbo.

“I think a few people have been pointing to Kaba last season where it didn’t work out for him, with one goal in 17 appearances, which on the face of it wouldn’t be good, but it was in a struggling side with quite a few of those appearances short substitute appearances.

“Also, with Kaba being 29 he offers a bit of experience, and I think we need that to balance out [Charlie] McNeill and [Bailey] Cadamarteri, who are good prospects but would need a more experienced head beside them.”

Danny Rohl continues Sheffield Wednesday rebuild ahead of Championship campaign

Only Oxford United can match Wednesday’s nine signings so far this summer, as Danny Rohl [pictured] continues to put his stamp on the Yorkshire side after working wonders to help them avoid the drop last season.

As well as the aforementioned McNeill who joins from Manchester United, the German has also added goalkeeping duo Ben Hamer and James Beadle to the ranks, as well as former Southampton right-back Yan Valery.

Ex-Sheffield United man Max Lowe also adds defensive cover on the other side of the field, while Jamal Lowe, Olaf Kobacki and Svante Ingelsson all add to the options in the final third.

With Nathaniel Chalobah also joining from West Bromwich Albion, Wednesday look like a side transformed ahead of the 24/25 campaign, and McKenna has full faith in Rohl to bring in the right characters to build a top squad, with Saba offering additional talents going forward.

He continued: “My general feeling is that it would be a positive move, and if it progresses I think we can be happy that there is a goalscorer in.

“You’ll hear Sheffield Wednesday fans say that they trust any signing that Danny Rohl thinks is good enough, because his record so far has been excellent.

“With any signing of any player, Danny Rohl can improve a player, and he doesn’t sign a player if he doesn’t think he has the attributes to play within his system.”