OWLS BID STRONGER IF THEY’RE ON RIGHT RHODES

JORDAN Rhodes, the Sheffield Wednesday striker, has played in the EFL for roughly 14 years now.

You’d think that was more than enough time to realise that he wasn’t, isn’t and never will be a target man.

But no. On Wednesday night, as the Owls laboured to a 3-0 defeat against Brentford, there he was. Chugging around. Losing headers. Making pointless runs.

Hoofing the ball at Rhodes is like playing a backpass to Joe Hart. He’ll deal with it to the best of his ability, but he’s not Manuel Neuer. And no amount of training or education will change that fact.

As Sam Allardyce said in his FLP column last year: “Jordan has had many years and many opportunities to make alterations to his game. If it hasn’t happened now, it probably never will.”

Perhaps, though, there is an argument for playing to Rhodes’ strengths. Booting it long - which seems to be caretaker Neil Thompson’s tactic of choice - makes sense if you’ve got dangerous players in the final third. Win the first ball, play off the second.

Yet the Owls have nobody capable of performing either of those roles. Barry Bannan aside, they have a squad bereft of craft. Or pace. Or strength.

What they do possess is a striker with a proven record of scoring goals IF he is played with a strike partner and provided with crosses.

Normally, it would make little sense to rebuild your system around a one-trick pony whose form has fallen off a cliff. But what have they got to lose?

Wednesday are the lowest scorers in the Championship and are going down unless something changes. In the absence of alternative options, weaponising Rhodes may be their best bet.