Sheffield Wednesday are aiming to make an unbelievable relegation escape a possibility, their survival chances in the Championship looking horribly bleak earlier in the season.
Now, with the popular Danny Rohl in the Hillsborough dug-out, the Owls are only three points off breaking out of the second-tier drop-zone with a number of recent wins turning their fortunes around.
New recruits such as Ian Poveda and Ike Ugbo have settled into the building almost instantaneously, with the latter of those two names bagging six goals in his last five starts for the relegation-threatened side.
Able to get both of these new faces in through the door on loan deals has proven to be a masterstroke by Rohl and Co, but not quite on the same level as Wednesday being able to offload this former hero for £5m back in 2019 who is now a forgotten figure.
Lucas Joao's time at Sheffield Wednesday
Lucas Joao would prove to be a fan's favourite for the Owls across five impactful campaigns in South Yorkshire, with the Angola international an unpredictable menace for EFL defences to contain.
The 30-year-old forward would find the back of the net 29 times from 127 appearances for Wednesday, which included Joao bagging ten goals in his final full season for the Owls before leaving.
Joao would gain various plaudits from opposition managers during his fruitful five-season stay at Hillsborough, once described as being "unplayable" by then Derby County manager Gary Rowett after the skilful attacker netted a brace at the expense of the Rams.
2019-20
1
1
0
2018-19
32
10
2
2017-18
34
9
4
2016-17
12
1
3
2015-16
48
8
4
The Owls would receive a bumper fee to part ways with Joao back in 2019, with the South Yorkshire titans adding a handsome £5m to their bank after the tricky 6 foot 4 attacker decided to join Reading just days after bagging a strike against the Royals.
Joao would go on to become a goalscoring hero in Berkshire in a similar fashion to what he was at Hillsborough, but his transfer value would take a hit regardless to show Wednesday that they were correct in letting their former star go when they did.
Lucas Joao's statistics after leaving Sheffield Wednesday
The towering attacker would go on to net an impressive 45 goals for Reading from 119 appearances, with his peak for the then Championship side coming during the 2020/21 campaign – firing in 22 goals from 40 matches in total.
Yet, despite being a constant reliable source of important strikes, Reading would be powerless to letting Joao leave on a free transfer to Chinese outfit Shanghai Port last year in the wake of the side's calamitous relegation down to League One.
The 30-year-old would bag just three goals in ten appearances for his new employers in China, before boldly making the switch to Qatar – a nation sitting as low as 37 in FIFA's World rankings – just this month to sign for Umm Salal SC.
It would take the former Wednesday man just four minutes to score on his debut in the Qatar Stars League, powering home a header with ease.
Regardless of the ex-Owls man still being prolific in front of goal, there will be no regrets on Wednesday's end that the club cut ties with Joao when they did.
Gaining £5m for the 6 foot 4 attacker was great business at the time, with Rohl's men relying on Ugbo and other forwards now in the present to fire in the decisive goals to stave off relegation.
