In October, the former Germany national team assistant coach was named as Xisco Munoz’s permanent replacement. The South Yorkshire team appeared set to be relegated back to League One at the time, sitting at the bottom of the Championship standings and seven points outside of safety.
Sheffield Wednesday ended the season three points above the drop zone after fighting their way back to the top three for nearly the whole season and suffering some heartbreaking outcomes.
For his heroics at Ipswich Town, where he led the Tractor Boys to a second straight promotion and their first Premier League return in 22 years, Kieran McKenna was named Manager of the Season. But Rohl deserves honorable praise for saving the Owls from certain death.
Due to his outstanding performance at Hillsborough, Rohl has been connected to more lucrative positions. Rumor has it that the 34-year-old is a managerial target for Hull City and Sunderland, two teams that could fight for promotion the next year.
However, Rohl still has a year left on his contract, and according to the Sheffield Star, Sheffield Wednesday will want payment in the neighborhood of £5 million if a buyer wishes to buy him out of his agreement. Furthermore, the board wants to demand twice Rohl’s cost, or almost £10 million, should they try to acquire his complete backroom crew.
Author’s Perspective
Selecting Rohl to succeed Munoz was a big risk for Sheffield Wednesday. After such a miserable start to the season, the club appeared certain to be relegated, so the management decided to trust someone who had never managed a professional team before.
But this faith was well placed. Given that Rohl has established himself as one of the top young coaches in European football, it is not unexpected that teams like Hull and Sunderland are vying for his services. Even yet, teams will be turned off by a £5–10 million cost, though maybe that is the intention.
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