Jones looks to fill gap as Barkley heads back

The teenager has been recalled by Premier League side Everton after two months at Hillsborough.

In 12 starts for the Owls he scored four goals, making him the club’s joint leading scorer in the Championship, alongside winger Michail Antonio. Striker Chris O’Grady has netted five times, but two of those came on the first day of the season in the Capital Cup at Oldham Athletic.

Eighteen-year-old Barkley initially joined the Owls on a youth loan for a month, which was later extended for a further four weeks. But Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest spelled the end of his time with the Owls.

Toffees manager David Moyes truncated Barkley’s loan after mounting injury problems at Goodison Park.

Moyes is without captain Phil Neville after knee surgery ruled him out for two months, while Darron Gibson (thigh) and Kevin Mirallas (hamstring) are also nursing injuries.

Barkley’s departure leaves a gaping hole in Wednesday’s midfield, and manager Dave Jones is scouring the market to bring in players before Thursday’s closure of the loan transfer window.

A striker is high on Jones’s wish list, such has been their shortage of goals from strikers this season in the Championship.

That was never more evident than on Saturday at the City Ground where numerous chances were spurned, leaving the Owls to fall 1-0 to Miguel Llera’s own goal. That defeat leaves Wednesday fourth from bottom, just three points ahead of basement club Peterborough.

Jones had been chasing Sunderland striker Connor Wickham, but Martin O’Neill is keen for the England Under-21 striker to stay in the North East and fight for a first-team spot.

One piece of good news for Jones is the welcome return to training of Chris Lines.

The midfielder was a key reason behind the Owls’ promotion last season, but a pre-season injury has left him sidelined until now. Barkley’s departure could speed up Lines’s return to first-team action with a Hillsborough double-header against Leicester City and Watford looming in the next seven days.

Jones will be forced into further changes for the Foxes game, with centre-half Llera suspended after collecting five yellow cards.