Sheffield Wednesday defender Julian Borner revealed he put family before football when Daniel Farke wanted him to join Norwich City.

Borner is suspended for the Canaries' Sunday visit in the Championship, and that means no reunion with his best friend, Marco Stiepermann, or the club he could have joined two years ago.

The German opted to stay in his homeland despite Farke's advances.

"Daniel Farke called trying to sign me,” said Borner, who also told the Sheffield Star it was watching Stiepermann rip it up in the Canaries' previous title win at this level that eventually convinced him to follow his path to England.

“I didn’t sign because my child had just been born over in Bielefeld and he called me the day after she was born. It would have been a big step for me at that time, it would have been too difficult, so I stayed in Germany.

"Because of Marco (I moved here). I watched the Norwich games every week. I speak to him three times a week – we’ve been friends for 15 years.

“I was a little bit anxious about a different language, country and culture, but he told me I must give it a go. He said English football was unbelievable and that it was better over here in the UK than in Germany.”

Borner has made 52 appearances for the relegation strugglers, since his free transfer, but is suspended this weekend after a red card in last weekend's 3-0 defeat at Reading.