West Ham United sign Wolves defender Roger Johnson on loan
Roger Johnson today clinched a shock Premier League return after West Ham turned to him to answer their SOS.
The Wolves misfit also stands on the brink of a Wembley appearance with the Hammers facing Manchester City in the Capital One Cup semi-final on Wednesday.
He will go straight into the squad if he is registered in time in a dramatic career turnaround.
Johnson has been on loan at Sheffield Wednesday since September and the Owls were keen on extending the deal.
But West Ham's bid has come out of the blue to hand Johnson a top-flight lifeline and boss Kenny Jackett confirmed the move today.
He said: "It is just a loan deal at the moment and the finances are structured around him playing – how many appearances he makes and whether they are successful. It's a really good opportunity for him because he's going to a Premier League club.
"It's a really good chance for him to build on what he has done at Sheffield Wednesday."
The 30-year-old was transfer listed at Molineux after they dropped into League One last season, their second successive relegation.
He was not part of Jackett's rebuilding plans and took a substantial pay cut to join the Championship Owls on loan for three months.
But with injuries to defenders Winston Reid, James Collins and James Tomkins, West Ham are desperate to bolster their backline.
The Hammers enquired about taking Manchester City's Joleon Lescott on loan but Manuel Pellegrini wants keep him.
Dudley-born boss Sam Allardyce is under pressure but joint chairmen David Sullivan and David Gold have written an open letter to the fans in the wake of their City Ground humiliation.
"We are under no illusions as to the seriousness of our current predicament football clubs and we will draw on all of our nous to get West Ham United out of this situation. January is not an easy time to do business but we are close to securing one of our key striking targets," they said today.
A defender is high on the list of priorities as well and progress is being made on that front."
