Portsmouth’s Championship rivals Sheffield Wednesday back in hot water with EFL after further payment issues
Sheffield Wednesday finished the 2024-25 Championship campaign four points ahead of Pompey in 12th.
Sheffield Wednesday could be back in hot water with the EFL amid further payment issues surrounding owner Dejphon Chansiri.
BBC Sheffield host and Sheffield Wednesday commentator Rob Straton has confirmed the Owls have once again failed to pay staff for the month of May after another delay.
News of the monetary issue comes just two months after the club suffered a ‘cashflow’ problem due to debts owed to the Thai businessman’s other companies. Chansiri’s family controls the Thai Union Group, which is the world’s largest producer of canned tuna.
After missing March’s payments, staff were later paid on April 7, with the Owls avoiding a three-window transfer embargo.
Strict EFL regulations state that any offending club could be sanctioned with a transfer embargo or a points deduction if the delay isn’t rectified within a 30-day threshold.
Now concerns have arisen again, which will no doubt put the Football League on high alert ahead of the forthcoming transfer window.
Sheffield Wednesday’s financial woes under Dejphon Chansiri
It’s not the first time Sheffield Wednesday have been in hot water in recent months, with the Hillsborough outfit placed under a registration embargo at the start of November by the League over amounts owed to HMRC.
That particular punishment was lifted after two weeks but was the second sanction within the past year.
Twelve months prior, Chansiri asked fans to raise £2m to help pay off outstanding debts and to pay player wages.
It doesn’t stop their either, with the Owls handed a six-point deduction during the 2020-21 campaign for breaching spending rules, which also saw them relegated to League One.
There has been plenty of growing anger and frustration by supporters, who have continued their stand against his ownership.
Chants were also heard from the stands throughout the afternoon which were directed towards Chansiri’s family, who were in attendance for the 1-1 draw.
Uncertainty over Danny Rohl position at Hillsborough
Meanwhile, there is plenty of mounting speculation surrounding boss Danny Rohl’s future, with the German expected to depart this summer.
Rohl had been heavily linked with a return to Southampton prior to Will Still’s appointment and has since been tipped with various roles across Europe.
There’s no doubt the latest financial issue will impact three former Pompey players, too. League Two title winners Jamal Lowe and Michael Smith and ex-loanee Di’Shon Bernard will be watching on in caution as further problems build behind the scenes at Hillsborough.
It remains to be seen whether the EFL will hand out any punishment to the club, with the transfer window set to open on Sunday.