Joost van Aken has left Hillsborough for Belgian club Zulte Waragem.
The 27-year-old defender, whose four-year contract at S6 expires this summer, took to Instagram to reveal his departure, although Wednesday have yet to confirm the move.
Van Aken says he has signed a two-year deal with Waragem, who play in the Belgian Pro League, the central defender adding on his Instagram page: “I want to thank Sheffield Wednesday for the past four years.”
He joined us from Dutch club Heerenveen for a reported £3m fee in August 2017 under Carlos Carvalhal’s reign, after we apparently scoured Europe looking for a suitable central defender.
However, van Aken failed to get to grips with life in the Championship and arguably never recovered from the 4-2 home defeat to Sheff U in September of that first season when he had a torrid time.
He played just 33 games for us over four campaigns, spending the 2019-20 season on loan in the 2. Bundesliga with Osnabrück.
Van Aken also had his fair share of injuries over the four years, making his final appearance at Blackburn on Boxing Day last year when he suffered a hamstring problem.