Boss clarifies Sheffield United's Reda Khadra position after Brighton loanee omitted again v QPR

Khadra, who missed United's trip to Blackpool on Thursday, was again left out of the 18 that took on QPR at Loftus Road this evening, with John Egan's 96th-minute equaliser rescuing a point for the Blades after his earlier error for the home side's opening goal.

Heckingbottom revealed last week that United have played Khadra in enough games to ensure the decision about his future remains in the Blades' hands, but suggested he would let the loanee go if he was able to secure a replacement for the rest of the season.

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"He's not making the squad," Heckingbottom said of the German youngster. "We're going to have a look at that. As I said, I don't want to be losing players if I can't bring players in. I want to keep the group together. We've had conversations with Brighton and Reda and they know the situation."

Asked if he would allow Khadra to return to Brighton if he was allowed to bring in a replacement, Heckingbottom said: "Yeah." Asked if he was able to do so, he insisted: "We should be able to, yeah."

On whether a decision had yet been made, Heckingbottom said: "No, it's just on me. He's not making the squad now, I get Brighton and Reda's position on that. They want the football, I get that. But likewise I've explained our position to them.

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"Everyone thinks we've got a huge squad, we haven't got a huge squad. We've worked hard to get two players in every position and Reda was part of that.

"We need to know and I need to be sure that we're going to have the funds to bring someone in on loan or what have you, and take it from there."

After arriving in the summer to some fanfare after his performances last season on loan at Blackburn Rovers, Khadra has failed to live up to the hype and has just four league starts to his name for the Blades so far.

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