Who is Sheffield Wednesday target Ian Poveda? Leeds United's ex-Man City, Arsenal & Barcelona man set for move

Sheffield Wednesday look set to beat off Championship competition for the signing of Leeds United attacker Ian Poveda. The Owls and Birmingham City were the two clubs to make a late push for Poveda, who has struggled to make his mark at Elland Road this season

But it looks as though Wednesday have won out with the deal to be completed before tonight's 11pm deadline. It comes as a huge boost for Danny Röhl's side as they look to drag themselves out of the Championship relegation zone over the coming weeks and months.

Here, the Star take a deeper look at Poveda's background and assess what he might bring to Hillsborough.

Who is Ian Poveda?

It's fair to say Poveda will arrive in South Yorkshire with pedigree. The 23-year-old Londoner spent time on the books of Chelsea, Arsenal, Barcelona and Brentford as a youngster before making the move up to Manchester City when he was just 16 years of age.

Poveda worked his way up the ranks at the Etihad Stadium to the cusp of the first-team picture and made his senior debut for the club against Burton Albion in the EFL Cup. However, that would be his only appearance under Pep Guardiola, with a switch to Leeds United coming in January 2020.

He made four Championship appearances in his first season for the Whites as Marcelo Bielsa guided them back to the Premier League after a lengthy hiatus and his performances warranted a role in the Premier League the next season, making 14 top flight outings off the bench.

A loan to Blackburn Rovers followed the next season, but a broken ankle saw to it that any progress at Ewood Park was limited. That was before last season's stint in the Championship with Blackpool, where he made 24 appearances and looked the part for large periods, despite a falling out with Mick McCarthy.

Poveda represented England at youth level, but he was recently called up by Colombia and has won two caps for the birth nation of his parents.

What position does Ian Poveda play?

Poveda has spent the majority of his career on the right wing, where he has the ability to step inside and look to create or beat his man down the outside before crossing. However, he has also been known to play off the left and more recently, he has taken on the number 10 role for Leeds on occasion. The 23-year-old spent time playing as a false nine in the Man City youth ranks, too.

What has Ian Poveda done this season?

Well, after being brought in from the cold by Daniel Farke, Poveda caught the eye in pre-season enough to convince the manager that he deserves to be part of his plans this season. He started Leeds' second game of the season at Birmingham City, too. However, since then his game time has been limited to say the least, making just a handful of appearances off the bench after finding himself rooted down the Elland Road pecking order.

He's played 10 times in all competitions but that adds up to a combined total of just 248 minutes on the field of play. As such, with game time appearing hard to come by over the next few months, he has been allowed to leave.

Where will Ian Poveda fit in at Sheffield Wednesday?

Röhl has options, it seems. Poveda has the talent and ability in order to be used as an impact sub for the Owls. But, having spent the first half of the campaign on the Leeds bench, Poveda will be gunning for a starting spot, of that there is no doubt.

He'll be expected to compete for a spot in the side with the likes of Anthony Musaba and Djeidi Gassama, while it wouldn't be a surprise if he was asked to play behind Ike Ugbo from time to time, with his creativity through the middle ensuring he can be a real menace when he's firing on all cylinders.