Sheffield Wednesday centre-back Julian Borner has hailed one of his teammates as ‘the best’ he’s ever played with following their victory over Bristol City at the weekend.
What’s he said?
The Owls won courtesy of a Barry Bannan penalty in the 85th minute in what was to be the only goal to separate the two playoff-chasing teams.
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It is indeed the 30-year-old playmaker that Borner has been waxing lyrical about this week.
The German colossus was reintroduced into the line up following an injury to Morgan Fox in the first half, and he contributed to them picking up a second successive clean sheet.
After the match, Borner handed Bannan a huge compliment, he said:
“Barry is amazing with the ball. I enjoy playing with him.
“He is one of the best players I have played with in his position.
“Barry is so important to the team.”
Bannan’s numbers this season
Much of the talk this season has been surrounding top goalscorer Steven Fletcher and just how important he is to Wednesday’s success, but Bannan is equally vital if not more so as pretty much everything runs through him in manager Garry Monk’s system.
The 27-time Scotland international ranks first in the Owls squad by a considerable margin for key passes per game (2.5) while his five assists also tops the charts.
Only two players in the whole of the Championship average more key passes – Reading’s John Swift and Luton’s Izzy Brown, who are before 24 or under.
Bannan even offers a bit defensively, averaging 1.5 tackles and 0.9 interceptions per game. He’s also the team’s set-piece taker as seen with his 1.9 crosses per match.
Borner’s glowing praise isn’t far off being correct, or at least in his mind, it could well be the case.
The diminutive midfielder hasn’t played in the top-flight since a miserable spell at Crystal Palace in 2015, but may he return there with Wednesday this campaign? Only time will tell.
Meanwhile, the Owls are starting to overcome one of their most significant issues in recent weeks…
