 On his return to Derby he hinted at a return to Sheffield Wednesday either on loan or permanently, Sheffield Wednesday caretaker manager Sean Mcauley also hinted at this.New permanent Wednesday manager Alan Irvine signed Varney on loan for the remainder of the season on 21 January 2010.Despite Varney's goals he was unable to prevent Sheffield Wednesday slipping to relegation on the final day of the 2009–10 season and returned to Derby his future still very much up in the air.