Sheffield Wednesday will be looking to build on a hugely impressive performance against Nottingham Forest last weekend when they host Bristol City at Hillsborough on Sunday. 

The Owls were ruthless in front of goal against Sabri Lamouchi's side as they ran out 4-0 winners at the City Ground.

One player that didn't play his part in the win though was Fernando Forestieri, who was ruled out of the game through an injury which he picked up in the win over Charlton Athletic earlier this month.

Speaking in a pre-match press conference ahead of their game against play-off chasing Bristol City, Garry Monk revealed that Forestieri is closing in on a return to the first team picture, but is yet to take part in training as of yet.

"Fernando hasn’t been out on the grass yet so we are taking it step by step with him, he’s not far away so we’ll see how it goes next week."

Forestieri's contract expires at the end of this year's campaign, and it'll be interesting to see if any clubs register their interest in landing his signature.

The Italian has only made ten appearances in all competitions this season, and it looks as though he faces a tough test to force his way back into the starting XI when he does return from injury, with the likes of Steven Fletcher and Jordan Rhodes looking sharp in front of goal in recent weeks.

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The Verdict: 

The sooner he's back in action, the better.

It's no secret that Forestieri hasn't been at his best for Sheffield Wednesday this season, and he needs to step up and perform at the earliest of opportunities.

He's out of contract at the end of the season, so it certainly wouldn't come as a surprise to me if the Owls were to cash in on him in January to avoid losing him for nothing in the summer of 2020.

It's set to be an interesting January transfer window ahead for the Italian and Sheffield Wednesday, with his future likely to be up in the air.