Sheffield Wednesday appear to be sticking with manager Henrik Pedersen for next season, despite being on track for a record low EFL points total this season.

Without a question, Sheffield Wednesday has had an extremely difficult season. The Owls, hampered by point deductions and significant limits on who they could get into their first-team squad, have experienced what appears to be a record-breakingly awful Championship season, approaching Easter Weekend with no positive points tally.

For manager Henrik Pedersen, this has been a season from hell. He was hired to his first coaching role in the English game last summer after Danny Rohl left, but he has been unable to persuade his team to perform, and point deductions are only part of the reason. Even without those deductions, Wednesday would be far down the list.

However, it appears that Wednesday will keep him at the end of the season. According to the Sheffield Star, Pedersen has already met with possible new owner David Storch, and if the takeover goes through as planned, Pedersen will guide the club through its summer rebuild with Head of Recruitment Kevin Beadell.

Sheffield Wednesday warned against continuing with Henrik Pedersen.

Football League World spoke with our resident Sheffield Wednesday fan pundit Patrick McKenna about the news, but Patrick does not believe this is the appropriate approach for the new ownership to take: “Ultimately, that would be the wrong move, I think. I know this season has been extremely difficult. This has not been a typical season for a manager. But I don’t think Pedersen is ready for a challenging season in League One.”

Although Patrick understands that the club’s circumstances this season have made Pedersen’s role impossible, he has noticed flaws in Pedersen’s management style that could cause problems next season: “It’s very hard to judge him at all, but at times his approach and some of his end-game management is slightly baffling, and there needs to be ruthlessness and a bit of experience about our manager next season.”

Patrick believes that the 15-point deduction means that Wednesday must get off to a fast start next season, and that fans’ patience will wear thin soon if the club begins slowly: “We’re going to start next season on -15. We need a speedy start, and I’m not sure if Pedersen will provide it. I believe that if he does not get going next season, the fans will begin to realize that we have made things more difficult and squandered time.”

While Patrick believes Pedersen is not the best candidate to lead the team next season, he would like him to stay with the club in some capacity: “I would certainly like him to stay at the club for some role next season, but I just don’t think that first team manager would be the best role for him or the club.”

Henrik Pedersen has had insurmountable challenges at Sheffield Wednesday this season.

To say Henrik Pedersen’s debut to English football management was a baptism of fire is an understatement. Sheffield Wednesday were already under a transfer embargo by the end of the summer 2025 transfer window, and a twelve-point deduction for going into administration in October killed any realistic chance of them staying up, especially when it was followed by a six-point deduction for failing to pay wages on time in the previous season.

Things haven’t really improved since the administration. It was hoped at the time that the sale process could be completed swiftly and that the club would be able to resume competition if a sale could be finalized by the end of the January timeframe.

Instead, this became a protracted process that lasted until the end of February and resulted with the preferred bidder, a group managed by professional gambler James Bord, collapsing amid allegations of finance concerns.

With the club back on the market, the Storch family’s group, Arise Capital, were the new preferred bidders. However, their bid for Wednesday will not be sufficient to prevent a mandatory 15-point deduction for the start of next season, as per EFL rules, because it will fail to pay unsecured creditors a minimum of 25p in the pound from the administration. Of course, this means that the team will face a significant battle next season.

There is no doubt that Pedersen has faced enormous – and eventually insurmountable – problems this season, but the issue may be that Sheffield Wednesday fans have seen little potential from his squads. The limits he has been working under have been severe, but his squad has fallen so far behind expectations this season that some will wonder whether he is the proper guy to lead the revival.

The appeal for David Storch is evident. If nothing else, Pedersen knows his way around the club and will be well informed of who he wants to keep beyond the conclusion of the season. He provides continuity, and he has led a team in a very impossible situation with dignity and elegance. Furthermore, Pedersen has openly said that he intends to stay.

However, the resurrection must begin at the start of the next season. Sheffield Wednesday will almost certainly start next season behind the rest of League One, and pressure will build swiftly if this season’s fiasco repeats itself. Even if Henrik Pedersen is retained until the conclusion of this season, anything short of a great start the following season will almost certainly jeopardize his employment.