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Blades sign midfield ace
SHEFFIELD United have fought off competition from Wolverhampton Wanderers and Preston North End to sign John-Joe O'Toole on loan after seeing a fresh spate of injuries wreck their squad for tomorrow's night's FA Cup fifth round replay at Hull City.
O'Toole, the Watford and Republic of Ireland under-21 midfielder, is expected to be unveiled at Bramall Lane this morning before making his debut for Kevin Blackwell's side against Birmingham on Sunday.
But the United manager's delight at capturing a player also being courted by at least two of his promotion rivals has been tempered after it emerged that Matthew Kilgallon, Nick Montgomery and Danny Webber are rated "touch and go" for the trip to the KC Stadium after being forced to undergo treatment following the 2-2 draw with Plymouth Argyle.
Kilgallon (back) and Montgomery (hamstring) reported problems after competing on a Home Park pitch described as a "glue pot" by one of their team mates while Webber, who scored the visitors' opening goal, has been diagnosed with gastroenteritis.
If United's worst fears are realised then it means they will join Arturo Lupoli, Craig Beattie, Leigh Bromby, Jamie Ward, Darius Henderson and Brian Howard on the sidelines against their Yorkshire rivals.
Blackwell, who watched Birmingham's Championship fixture at Crystal Palace last night before returning to South Yorkshire, told The Star: "We've already got a lot out and now Monty and Killa haven't trained.
"Danny hasn't been in at all and he's obviously feeling very low.
"He's not come in and we'll have to see how he feels."
With O'Toole scheduled to spend the rest of the season with United, Blackwell added: "Ian Bennett, our goalkeeper, had the same thing not so long back and ended-up losing half a stone in weight.
"It's not a nice thing to have."
Despite slipping to seventh in the table following the latest round of league fixtures, United remain in the thick of the promotion race with Blackwell believed to be keen on making further reinforcements next week.
However, with at least 10 Premier League teams still battling for survival, doing business in the top-flight is proving extremely problematic.
Former United midfielder Michael Tonge, who has been linked with a return to Blackwell's squad, is unlikely to be allowed to leave Stoke despite finding starting roles in short supply since moving to Staffordshire in the Autumn.
Blackwell said: "There are eight weeks to go and people are not going to let anyone leave lightly. But we'll keep on looking and trying."
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Friday 10 February 2012
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