olofinjana still hoping to land owls contract

The midfielder played a key part in keeping the Owls in the Championship last season and has been training at the club’s Middlewood Road training ground for the last few months.

The 33-year-old Nigerian international is a free agent after his KC Stadium deal expired but Jones has been unable to offer him a contract due to having spent his salary budget.

Jones hopes to send some of his fringe players out on loan to free money up for an Olofinjana deal, similar to the one offered to fellow midfielder Stephen McPhail who had also been training with the club having left Cardiff City.

“We need to still move people out,” said Jones.

“He (Olofinjana) is training until we can do something for him.

“I believe in the players here, they are a strong bunch, they have done it before and they will do it again.

“Daft as it sounds, the players we have here are a little bit better than what we had last year.”

With Gary Madine jailed for 18 months yesterday, after being found guilty of two nightclub assaults, the Owls must now decide what action to take and whether they should terminate the £5,000-a-week striker’s contract freeing up money to bring in a replacement.

Jones believes the Owls could have been 10 points better off already this season, after failing to win despite taking the lead in five Championship games this season.

The lastest dropped points came on Tuesday night when an 89th-minute equaliser cancelled out Matty Fryatt’s debut goal.

“If we don’t make the error, then we come away with a 1-0 victory,” said Jones.

“What we planned worked a treat until the 89th minute. It was poor on our part.

“It’s all about scoring goals and keeping clean sheets, and this year we have been in front five times and then allow the other team to get back into it.

“These are the things we have to eradicate.

“Looking at the points tally we could have been 10 points better off. Unless you do the basics – keep a clean sheet after you have scored – it’s always going to be costly,” added Jones.