Billy Sharp has already made his future ambition clear as speculation linking him with an emotional return to boyhood club Sheffield United resurfaced this week after an admission from current Blades boss Chris Wilder

Billy Sharp's association with his boyhood club Sheffield United is already well known across three separate spells as a player - but that may not be the extent of it in the future. The former United striker, 40, is preparing for the next stage of his career as he prepares to leave Doncaster Rovers this summer.

Sharp insists he is still fit enough to continue his playing career but he has refused to rule anything out in terms of other avenues he may pursue. He goes into his last two games for Rovers five goals of the impressive 300 mark in his league career.

United chief Chris Wilder has left the door open for Sharp to potentially return to Bramall Lane in a coaching capacity, telling The Star yesterday that he remains in contact with his former United captain and adding: "We'll see what he has to say on that one."

The prospect of wearing the swords on his chest again would be an emotional one for Sharp but he is also conscious that players are a long time retired and he is taking inspiration from former Blades teammates Phil Jagielka and David McGoldrick, who carried on well into the twilight of their careers.

But he has also studied for his coaching badges alongside his playing commitments in recent years and admitted this week: "I'm not going to hide away from it, I want to be a manager one day. I know I'm going to have to do work to get there but I've been doing that for the past 10 years," he said.

"I've been getting my diplomas and whenever I've been sat on the bench at Doncaster I've been looking at other managers at what they do and trying to learn from them.

"I'm meeting a lot of people and learning as I go along. I'm an ambitious person.

"I've got a lot of experience and I want to use that to go and influence other groups in the next parts of my career."