Joe Wildsmith

Joseph Charles Wildsmith (born 28 December 1995) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Sheffield Wednesday.

Club Career

Sheffield Wednesday

Born in Sheffield, England, Wildsmith began his football career at Sheffield Wednesday, his boyhood club. Wildsmith signed a 2+1⁄2-year professional contract with Sheffield Wednesday in November 2013 after impressing with the club's youth teams. Throughout the 2014–15 season, Wildsmith appeared four times as an unused substitute.

Wildsmith made his Owls debut in Wednesday's 4–1 League Cup win over Mansfield Town at Hillsborough on 11 August 2015. On 28 August 2015, he signed a new two-year contract with the club keeping him until the summer of 2017. Two weeks later on 15 September 2015, Wildsmith kept his first clean sheet, in a 0–0 draw against Bolton Wanderers. He then made further League cup starts against Premier League giants Newcastle United and Arsenal, claiming clean sheets and wins over both teams. Wildsmith broke into the first-team under new manager Carlos Carvalhal, as Keiren Westwood was injured and Chris Kirkland had left for Preston North End. As a result, he made his return to the starting line–up as a first choice goalkeeper, keeping a clean sheet, in a 3–0 win against Birmingham City. This was followed up by starting in the next three matches, including earning his fourth clean sheet of the season against Fulham on 2 January 2016. However, Wildsmith suffered a back injury that kept him out for two months. After recovering from injury, he returned to the substitute bench and didn't make an appearance until on 9 April 2016, starting the whole game, in a 4–1 loss against Bristol City. At the end of the 2015–16 season, Wildsmith went on to make fourteen appearances in all competitions.

Ahead of the 2016–17 season Wildsmith was featured in the two out of the five pre–season matches for the side. He made his first appearance of the