Sheffield Wednesday have one huge weakness this season but they shouldn’t even try and fix it

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Sheffield Wednesday are fighting against all the odds this season to survive in the Championship, but their biggest challenge of all is all down to their own fans… and they shouldn’t change a thing.

With Sheffield Wednesday under EFL restrictions in the transfer market, the Owls have still only been able to make one signing this summer – the emergency deal to bring Ethan Horvath to the club.

Dejphon Chansiri’s financial difficulties have not made Henrik Pedersen’s job easy at all, with the new Owls manager already deemed to be fighting a losing battle to avoid relegation.

Meanwhile, Sheffield Wednesday supporters are very upset and angry with Chansiri, and are not hiding their feelings at all when it comes to protests and boycotts this season.

• READ MORE: How Independent Regulator feels about Sheffield Wednesday as three-month Chansiri timeline revealed

Sheffield Wednesday will find it hard to win at Hillsborough without supporters

Wednesday fans have staged some form of protest at every game so far this season. Be it arriving late to their seats for the opening day fixture against Leicester City, staying away from the Carabao Cup clash versus Leeds United, or the plan to throw teddy bears onto the pitch against Swansea City.

There was some criticism over the protests against Stoke City for the first home game of the campaign, with claims that not enough people turned out to make their feelings known.

However, there’s no denying that attendances at Hillsborough have been far lower than normal. In the two Championship matches this season, the Owls have averaged an attendance of 20,712, which is down from over 26,000 in 2024/25 and 2023/24.

Not only are there fewer fans in the ground, but those who are present are creating a hostile atmosphere to show their disdain for Dejphon Chansiri. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. And long may it continue, too, until the Thai businessman is driven away from the club he is destroying.

But, there’s no denying that the lack of support in the ground is adding to the pressure on the players and making Hillsborough the furthest from a fortress it could possibly be. The Owls are yet to score in the league at home this season, and we’ve seen significantly worse performances in those two games in S6 compared to the three away games they’ve played.

That’s just something the players and their manager will have to deal with, sadly. Under no circumstances should the fans stop their protests until things improve.

• READ MORE: What John Textor ‘has to find’ before he can buy Sheffield Wednesday as Dejphon Chansiri avoids UK visit

The travelling away fans can be Sheffield Wednesday’s biggest strength

Regardless of that issue at Hillsborough, the Wednesday supporters are also now the providers of the biggest advantage the Owls squad possesses this season.

In the away games at Leicester, Wrexham, and even in the cup against Bolton Wanderers, Sheffield Wednesday fans have travelled in their thousands to support their team on the road.

There can be no denying that the raucous support they have received has given the players a much-needed boost and driven them to go against all the adversity they’re facing to make a statement away from home.

If those fans keep turning up in their droves – which they will – then Sheffield Wednesday have a real fighting chance of picking up some crucial points on their travels. In the end, those away days could end up being the difference between staying in the Championship and being relegated.