Sheffield Wednesday's erratic displays in the Championship last season eventually culminated in the club suffering relegation to the third-tier of English football in May.

After opting to sack Garry Monk and Tony Pulis within a relatively short time period, the Owls decided to turn to Darren Moore for inspiration earlier this year.

Whilst performances under the guidance of the Wednesday manager improved, the club were unable to achieve a miraculous survival and are now preparing for life in a new division.

Having already made drastic changes to his squad by releasing a host of players, Moore could now face a battle on his hands to keep Julian Borner at the club if recent reports are anything to go by.

According to German newspaper Bild (as cited by Yorkshire Live), the six-foot two-inch defender is the subject of considerable interest from Hannover 96 who have already offered him a chance to move to the club.

It is understood that Moore wants to bring in a new central defender this summer which has in turn cast doubt on Borner's long-term future at Hillsborough.

Since joining Wednesday in 2019, the defender's development has been stifled somewhat by a failure to establish himself as a mainstay in the club's starting eleven.

During the previous campaign, Borner was limited to 26 appearances in the Championship due to competition from the likes of Osaze Urhoghide, Chey Dunkley and Tom Lees who is set to leave the Owls when his contract expires at the end of June.

Whilst he fell out of favour with Pulis, the 30-year-old did benefit from the arrival of Moore as he featured in each of the club's final 11 fixtures of the season.

GIVEMESPORT's Joshua Cole says...

If Hannover 96 are indeed interested in Borner, it will be intriguing to see whether he opts to call time on his spell at Wednesday this summer in order to return to Germany.

Whereas the defender did struggle at times for consistency last season, he still managed to average a WhoScored match rating of 6.81 which was only bettered by three other Owls players.

With Wednesday set to play in the third-tier during the upcoming campaign, Borner could potentially thrive at this level if he continues to learn from Moore's guidance.

However, when you consider that the Owls' recent financial struggles have resulted in a failure to pay players, it wouldn't be at all surprising if the club decide to cash in on Borner whose current deal at Hillsborough runs until 2022.

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