Sheffield Wednesday’s recent transfer activity has just made it a whole lot harder for one Owls starlet to gain a long-awaited break in the first-team setup.
Player profiled
His name is Preslav Borukov, a Bulgarian striker who joined the south Yorkshire outfit back in 2016 from PFC Levski Sofia before signing his first professional contract in the summer of 2018.
Now aged 19, the Owls U23 frontman will soon be running out of time if he is to make a mark on manager Garry Monk and break into that senior fold.
Borukov is described as a ‘real physical presence’ by the club’s official website, who also state his ability to hold up the ball and attack crosses.
The young prospect has been capped at youth level for his national team and was named on the bench for Wednesday’s FA Cup tie at Queens Park Rangers last month.
The future
However, as previously stated, his place in Monk’s striker pecking order has sunk even further since his rare sighting as a substitute.
The 40-year-old boss clinched Conor Wickham on loan from Crystal Palace as well as unknown forward Alessio Da Cruz from Parma in the final week of the transfer window – the latter even made his debut at the weekend with Borukov nowhere to be seen.
Watch Sheffield Wednesday Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below
If you presume a fit Steven Fletcher – the top goalscorer at the club – is Monk’s first-choice option, you then have Wickham and Cruz to add to Jordan Rhodes, Sam Winnall, Atdhe Nuhiu and maybe even Fernando Forestieri.
That would mean the rising Bulgarian powerhouse is merely seventh or eighth choice currently. What chance does he have of ever becoming a first-team regular?
Calling all EFL experts: Can you get full marks on this stadiums quiz?
The Owls have the second oldest squad in the Championship, so Borukov’s involvement would surely help Monk begin trending towards that rebuilding job, but it just seems growingly uncertain that the 19-year-old will ever be able to actually contribute given the mountain of options ahead of him.
And in other news, here’s why Sheffield Wednesday taking a significant risk with Connor Wickham…
