There is merit in Sheffield United selling Anel Ahmedhodzic but with 3 strict provisos

What this column would love to do is come in all guns blazing and say Sheffield United must keep Anel Ahmedhodzic at all costs. He’s one of their best players, arguably THE best, despite a few erratic moments in a disrupted season.

You don’t sell your best players. Not if you want to progress. Not if you want to maintain a chance of staying in the Premier League. And not if the untimely sale of your two previous best players has pointed the way to relegation in the first place. Besides, Ahmedhodzic is a flagship player for Chris Wilder, his captain.

See how the logic of the argument stacks up. Except that in this case, more than the others, you can see why it might be good business - but only if the money is very good. And that’s despite the fact that, unlike with Iliman Ndiaye and Sander Berge, the Blades aren’t pressured by a contract wind-down.

The big problem with those previous sales was a lack of foresight, a failure to tie down valuable players and have a reinvestment button ready to press - right on the eve of the season. This is different. With three strict provisos. A fee of many multiples of the bargain £3m they paid for Ahmedhodzic. A willingness to spend the money (ideally all of it). And the options, plus time, to do so before the window closes.

Anything less and it is a white flag of surrender on staying in the top flight. But if contingencies are in place you can see why United might do business with Napoli, for instance. The reality is that the Bosnia international would lose value if United are relegated and, let’s face it, that is likelier than not.

There is also the reality that, without trading, Chris Wilder appears to have a relatively low budget. And even if the right reinforcements cannot be engineered before January 31st, a big sale could be seen as a major push towards reshaping the squad for whatever next season brings.

In either division, the club is at a crossroads with the contracts of so many long-serving players expiring. On top of all that, there’s only a handful of clubs, the elite, who don’t sell their best players or at least hold the cards on timing.

Sheffield United are a million miles from that. Which is not to say the club can’t attract more muscle if the owner is in any way serious about selling. But right now, however sadly, I can’t see how the Blades can walk away from a huge profit on one player. That’s the risk with a week to go in this window. So I sincerely hope temptation is not put in the way.