League One Sunderland were reportedly hoping to sign striker Sam Winnall in January, but he is staying in the Championship with Sheffield Wednesday.
Sam Winnall turned down the chance to leave Sheffield Wednesday in the January transfer window amid interest from Sunderland, according to The Star.
The striker has failed to impress at Hillsborough since he joined from Yorkshire rivals Barnsley for £500,000 two years ago, as reported by The Sun, and spent last season on loan at Derby County.
And, since returning to Wednesday, Winnall has played just 28 minutes of Championship football thanks to injury. As a result, The Star reports that they were ready to let the one-time Wolves youngster leave on loan last month with Sunderland keen to take him to the Stadium of Light.
But, according to new Owls boss Steve Bruce, Winnall had no desire to leave Wednesday on a temporary basis once again.
“There were one or two inquiries about Sam but, to be fair to him, he wanted to stay and prove himself to ourselves,” said the former Sunderland boss Bruce. “That was his response and that is fine by me. I have no problem with that.”
Considering that Winnall scored 21 goals in 43 League One games for Barnsley in the 2015/16 season, he could have been a fine addition for a Sunderland side who are hoping to secure a return to the Championship between now and May.
Fortunately for The Black Cats, however, they did manage to secure another lethal third-tier goal scorer, Will Grigg, before last week’s transfer deadline.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
