Sheffield Wednesday manager Darren Moore has said it's 'wonderful' to see defender Dominic Iorfa back and raring to go, with the 26-year-old recently returning to full contact training and appearing in a friendly today.

The Owls centre-back missed the second half of last season after rupturing his Achilles in December and had an operation shortly after, making it unclear when he would be available for the South Yorkshire side again.

But along with fellow key Wednesday man Josh Windass, he was another player who wasn't out of contract at Hillsborough in the summer after being signed from Wolverhampton Wanderers in January 2019.

 

 

He was a regular for the rest of that term and continued in the same vein during the 2019/20 season, making 45 competitive appearances in the Championship, Carabao Cup and the FA Cup.

This will give Wednesday fans hope the 26-year-old can return to full fitness ahead of the new campaign and become a vital asset for the Owls, who suffered relegation from the second tier in May and have endured a stormy summer at Hillsborough.

However, with their transfer embargo being lifted, new players coming in and the news of Iorfa's return, there are finally a few reasons for Darren Moore to be optimistic again.

Speaking to the club's media team, he said: "To see Dominic Iorfa back today is wonderful.

"We wanted to give him 20 minutes today and that’s him off and running now.

"He’s back in full contact training, he’s been itching to get out there.

"Really it’s been us holding back the reins on him but it’s wonderful to have him back, he’s a big player for us."

Iorfa came on in the 70th minute for Julian Borner in their friendly against Barnsley this afternoon - and helped to keep the score down as their Yorkshire rivals came out 2-0 winners.

The Verdict:

The return of the 26-year-old will be a massive boost for Moore, who is currently suffering with a lack of squad depth in his Sheffield Wednesday squad after only just being given the green light by the EFL to make signings this summer.

Speaking of Julian Borner, his contract situation with the third-tier side and Hannover 96 continues to remain uncertain so that's another reason why this return is much-needed - and Iorfa will be hoping to build on this and increase his workload as pre-season continues.

Whether he will be fully fit and available for their opening league game away at Charlton Athletic remains to be seen, but they will be hoping he will be in contention as they enter a League One baptism of fire.

If he does start at The Valley, he will be competing against the likes of Conor Washington and Jayden Stockley - an unenviable task for any third-tier centre-back.