Former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder David Prutton suggests possible reason for Darren Moore's Owls exit

Moore left Hillsborough by mutual consent, despite having led the club to promotion from League One less than a month prior. His departure stunned supporters and a replacement has not yet been announced.

Prutton, who represented Wednesday between 2011 and 2014, suggested Wednesday may be trying to secure back-to-back promotions while discussing Moore’s departure on Sky Sports.

He said: “Let’s not forget, they were a team that was one game away from the Premier League several seasons ago, so maybe that’s a reflection of where their thought process is. Maybe it’s not about consolidation, maybe they’re going to try and jump twice in two seasons.”

He admitted his surprise at the departure, hailing Moore as a “wonderful” man and a “very good” coach. Prutton said: “[I was] surprised, even though the cliché goes that you shouldn’t be surprised by anything in football, especially given how long we’ve all been talking about it. I thought after that first leg, there was a lot of consternation with regards to how his future at Sheffield Wednesday was going to pan out.

"I thought being able to do what the did in the second leg, being able to do what they did at Wembley, would mean that they would move forward with a little bit more consistency, with an air of balance and foundation to attack the Championship once again.

“But, a choice has been made. Darren’s moved on. I think it doesn’t help in a sense of we all know Darren well, we all think he’s a wonderful, wonderful man and a very good coach. But sometimes, you’ve got to take out the emotion when it comes to discussing a situation such as that.”