Sheffield United: ‘Don’t call me a midfielder anymore, I’m a defender through and through’
Chris Basham now regards himself as a centre-half, having spent much of his Sheffield United career being described as a utility player.
The 30-year-old, who agreed a new long term contract earlier this term, made the admission after being deployed in midfield during last weekend's win over Leeds at Elland Road.
Basham scored his fourth goal of the season to hand Chris Wilder's side a vital 1-0 win over their rivals for automatic promotion.
Acknowledging he initially struggled to get the grips with a role he regularly performed until United unveiled their take on the 3-5-2 system, Basham said: "The goals come when I'm playing at my worst, every time I have a bad game and don't feel at my best.
"The gaffer put me in there, I class myself as a centre-half now, to try and shore it up and weather a storm because we knew they'd look to start fast."
Although Martin Cranie performed well against Marcelo Bielsa's side, making a series of important interventions during the first-half, Basham is expected to revert to his preferred position when United return to action following the international break.
"I was thinking 'this is the type of weather for me', with the boggy pitch," Basham added. "I struggled to start with but the more the game went on, the more confidence we got I thought."