Sheffield United: Manchester City midfielder is ready for lift-off predicts the boss
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With fellow midfielder Sander Berge expected to be out until December after being diagnosed with a ruptured ankle ligament, McAtee could make only his fifth start for United during tomorrow’s game against Blackpool.
Despite being regarded as a potential first team player of the future at Manchester City, the club he left to join Heckingbottom’s squad on a season long loan, the 19-year-old initially struggled to adjust to the physical nature of second tier competition.
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Hide AdBut speaking ahead of the meeting with Michael Appleton’s side, Heckingbottom, who substituted McAtee at half-time during August’s visit to Luton Town, said: “James, he’s getting much more positive. I think what happened down there was an eye-opener for him and, to be honest, I think that’s good. I put pressure on him and he puts pressure on me. In all of his introductions since then, we’ve seen him get much more positive and the same goes for during training sessions as well. He’s responding to what’s required and we are expecting a lot of really good things from him. He expects a lot from himself too, which is really good to see.”
United were dealt a blow during the build-up to their clash with Blackpool when it emerged both Berge and Jayden Bogle are set to be out of action until after the forthcoming World Cup in Qatar, which finishes on December 18th. Despite their on-going injury issues, which will see John Fleck, Jack Robinson, Enda Stevens, Ciaran Clark, Max Lowe and Ismaila Coulibaly also miss this weekend’s contest, United remained on top of the table following their defeat by Stoke City.
“I thought he (McAtee) was competing physically against Stoke,” Heckingbottom said. “He might not have won all the duels but he wasn’t backing away from them, and that’s your starting point. He’s aware of that and it’s one of the reasons he wanted to come out and experience it.”