Sheffield Wednesday fans dreams of the Premier League have been so cruelly dashed in the closing stages of the past few seasons, but optimism will return ahead of the new campaign following play-off semi-final defeat to Huddersfield in May.

The Owls were one of the strongest teams in the division last season, and boss Carlos Carvalhal knows a couple of quality additions this summer should be enough to finally get his team over the line and back into the top flight.

Wednesday lost only 13 games last year, but bringing that figure down will be the difference between another play off finish and breaking the top two.

Bolstering the defence could make the difference in securing those final few victories, and the addition of Everton’s Matthew Pennington to the squad would add additional class to the Wednesday back line.

The Everton youngster is on the verge of consistently breaking into the first team at Goodison Park, and a goal against Liverpool at the Kop End last season did the defender’s aspirations no harm.

Pennington is extremely versatile and a great addition to any squad, but a successful season in the Championship would truly confirm the player has the ability to succeed at the highest level.

At 22 years of age, Pennington has the potential a long and prosperous career with Everton, and a solid season at Sheffield Wednesday could be the true making of the player.