Former Sheffield Wednesday man gave Nathaniel Chalobah glowing reference before the move

The former Chelsea and England midfielder joined the club on a free transfer after being let go by West Brom at the end of last season.

Chalobah, 29, becomes the ninth signing at Hillsborough this summer and the club’s sixth free agent signing of the summer so far.

Danny Rohl is putting together a very impressive pre-season at Sheffield Wednesday, ahead of what will be his first full season in management.

Chalobah spoke fondly of Rohl before his move to S6 was announced, highlighting Rohl’s ambition for Sheffield Wednesday as a key factor behind his decision to move to the Steel City.

But it appears that a rather unlikely face has helped get a deal for Chalobah over the line, with Chalobah revealing that former Chelsea teammate Ike Ugbo also played a role.

Nathaniel Chalobah reveals Ike Ugbo talks before Sheffield Wednesday move

Speaking to the club in his first interview as a Sheffield Wednesday player, Chalobah revealed that last season’s loan hero Ugbo gave him a good reference of the club.

Chalobah and Ugbo are former Chelsea youth team players and Ugbo spoke fondly of Rohl and of Sheffield Wednesday as a club.

Chalobah said: “I’ve had a few references of some of the players here, and they said the difference that he’s made has been unbelievable.

“I spoke to Ike Ugbo, I know he’s not here, but he’s someone that I know from my time at Chelsea.

“So I spoke to him, and I think his reference was enough for me to be in the right frame of mind.”

Danny Rohl is breeding one thing at Sheffield Wednesday, and it’s having huge positive effects

Ugbo’s reference to Chalobah shows that word travels among players.

Rohl is creating a very feel-good factor at the club and it’s obviously helping Sheffield Wednesday to attract a caliber of payers that they might have struggled to attract in the past, without putting huge sums of money on the table.

Chalobah brings Premier League and Championship experience to the club and bolsters what was, at the start of the summer transfer window, a very depleted midfield department.

And he’s someone who will have played with some top players during his time at Chelsea and Fulham, so he too may be able to give references to players of interest at Sheffield Wednesday in the future.

The more high caliber players that join, and the better that Sheffield Wednesday perform under Rohl, the better type of players they’ll be able to attract going forward.

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