Prutton sets out on a mission to return to the top flight with Owls

Some might say the midfielder has been ‘slumming it’ for the last 18 months. Some would definitely say that about the Owls.

Prutton spent three seasons in the Premier League as a youngster and was widely tipped as a future England star; the Owls, meanwhile, played European football in the Nineties but have drifted aimlessly since relegation 11 years ago.

Both parties want to get back to the top-flight as quickly as possible but both are currently preparing for another season in League One.

For Prutton, who has played for Colchester United and Swindon Town since leaving Leeds United 18 months ago, time may even be running out.

Approaching his 30th birthday, this could be his last crack at the big time.

Although his new employers are still a League One club, they have a Premiership past and one of the biggest stadia in the country.

Their average home gate is also bigger than those of his previous two clubs put together.

Prutton insists that his career is far from ‘done and dusted’ yet also acknowledges the gulf that has developed between the start he made and his current status.

“I suppose I have been playing at a lower scale. Every time you join a new club, you hope it’s the right decision – but sometimes things don’t work out,” he said. “I loved playing for the England Under-21s and I crossed paths with some of the world’s great players – Van Der Vaart and Ronaldo, for example – but I guess they won’t even know me from Adam now!

“I am not going to say I should have gone the way they went because I am not in their class and that is a dream world,” he admitted. “But I am not done and dusted yet.”

When Prutton joined the Owls over two months ago, there was talk of a summer transfer stampede at Hillsborough. However, in recent weeks, the signings have dried up.

Manager Gary Megson voiced concerns about the lack of new additions when only Rob Jones, Jose Semedo and Julian Bennett had followed Prutton into the club.

The return of defender Danny Batth on loan this week from Wolves helps but still more are needed.

“We know we are still a couple of players short but it is a funny time of year,” said Prutton, who was once sold for £2.5m by Nottingham Forest to Southampton. “As the years have rolled by, this time of the summer has got more and more bizarre. There will be a lack of transfer activity then suddenly a lot of movement. I was signed quite early but I am sure the manager has other players in mind.”

Originally from Hull, Prutton is a long-time friend of Ian Ashbee, the midfielder who played a major role in his home-town club’s rise from Fourth Division to the Premier League.

Prutton views Ashbee, 34, as an inspiration saying: “Ian was 31 when he got his chance in the Premier League but he held his own,” said Prutton. “He played a big part in what Hull achieved so you can never say never in this game.

“Last season was not my best,” he reflected. “But honest endeavour was always my priority. There is an increasing gap between the footballer and the fan these days but fans will still feel they have more of an affiliation with a player if he goes out there and does everything he can to win for the club.”

Prutton was certainly a popular figure with Leeds fans during his two-and-a-half-year stay at Elland Road and was nicknamed ‘Jesus’ because of the hairstyle he still sports today.

“I had a fantastic time at Leeds and it is great to be playing for a big Yorkshire club again,” he said. “Growing up as a kid, I always used to watch Goals on Sunday on TV and, every week, they would show Sheffield Wednesday, Sheffield United and Leeds.

“It would be great if Sheffield Wednesday could become a force again in English football. That’s why I am here,” he said.

During his time at Leeds, Prutton missed out on promotion to the Championship. The Owls suffered the same fate last season but Prutton believes that experience will come in handy.

“A lot of teams come down from the Championship and expect to bounce straight back but it is often easier said than done,” he said. “Now people know what this league is about so the shock barrier has gone. We are expected to win promotion because we are viewed as a big club and, with a few more bodies, that target is seriously achievable.”

Reflecting on his career, Prutton said: “I enjoyed playing in the Premier League because it was something I had always wanted to do as a kid. I am thankful that I got that opportunity and I know I am in a fantastic profession and try not to take it for granted.

“You can look back on your career through rose-tinted spectacles but life in the Premier League was very pressurised and you could never switch off.

“I look back with more affection on other things like the atmosphere behind the scenes at different clubs. With Nottingham Forest, we had a good mix of young and old, everyone socialised together. It was the same at Leeds.”

Over the last few weeks, the Owls have explored the possibility of a Prutton/Jose Semedo partnership in the centre of midfield. The two men were not exactly on the best of terms last season but Prutton believes there are no hard feelings.

“I stamped on Jose last season playing for Swindon against Charlton,” he added. “Of course, it was an accident – but he seems to have wiped that from his memory which is good news.”

Owls supporters will be hoping Prutton stamps his authority on games rather than opponents this coming season.