United manager Kevin Blackwell has repeatedly claimed he is happy with the options at his disposal.

But behind the scenes, Blackwell, who sanctioned the departures of Stead on loan, and Tonge, for a reported £2 million, before last night's deadline, has asked the club's scouting system to compile a list of candidates.

Blackwell's spies have focused the majority of their investigations abroad, where United believe they have a better chance of discovering a player who has slipped under the radar of Premier League clubs.

With teams in the Championship still able to complete loan deals, Blackwell can still enter the domestic market and could be forced to ignore his aversion to temporary deals following Tonge's sale to Stoke.

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"We want someone who is capable of splitting open a defence with one pass," a source told The Star.

"Someone who can shift the play at a moment's notice and who is equally as confident doing so to either side.

"There are one or two people under consideration but it's quite possible that we could still look elsewhere."

Having made an encouraging start to the new Championship campaign, Blackwell is keen to do business from a position of strength, while the return to fitness of striker James Beattie makes the prospect of acquiring an inventive schemer even more alluring.

Stead has initially joined Ipswich on loan until January.

However, United have already agreed a fee with their counterparts at Portman Road in anticipation of the switch being made permanent.

Bramall Lane's directors expected to learn the outcome of the recent Carlos Tevez Affair tribunal later this month.

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