Chris Wilder explains why Sheffield United could be forced to play a waiting game in the transfer market

With only 12 days to go before Wolverhampton Wanderers visit Bramall Lane, Wilder is still searching for the five new signings he believes are required in order to ensure his squad remains competitive at the highest level.

Liverpool’s Rhian Brewster and John Swift of Reading feature on United’s wanted list, while West Bromwich Albion’s Oliver Burke has also been linked with a move to South Yorkshire as part of a swap deal involving Callum Robinson.

Although Wilder would have preferred to have them “all in the building” by the time United complete their warm-up programme with a trip to Preston North End on Friday, with the transfer window remaining open for another five weeks he believes patience will be a virtue in the search for reinforcements.

“We’re down the line with a couple of loans,” Wilder confirmed. “And there’s another situation that we’re exploring.

“I don’t think all our business will be done. In an ideal world, they would all be in the building right now but, as we’ve seen, it’s not an ideal world is it. And with everything getting swapped around, I think we might have to wait for some. But if that is the case, then so be it.”

With the Covid-19 pandemic prompting a revision of the fixture calendar and a round of international matches being shoehorned into the schedule, United’s negotiations with many of their leading targets are proving extremely complex as Wilder’s top-flight and Championship counterparts look to protect their own positions. Jurgen Klopp is known to be keen on the idea of placing Brewster with United to accelerate the striker’s development but has indicated a final decision is unlikely to be made on the England under-21 player’s destination until the campaign is already underway.

Yakou Meite, a team mate of Swift’s at Reading, is also reportedly attracting interest from Wilder while Emmanuel Dennis of Club Brugge - United boast a strong network of contacts in Belgium - is another centre-forward thought to have been assessed. Matty Cash, the Nottingham Forest defender, was the subject of an undisclosed bid from United before their recent training camp in Scotland but the proposed deal now seems to be in danger of collapsing after a number of other clubs, including Aston Villa, entered the chase.

“We’re working as hard as anyone,” Wilder said. “We’re confident with where we’re at and we’ll keep plugging away, as we always do.

“We’re in talks and, like I say, we’re down the track with a couple of things. But the situation is so different now to what everyone is used to and that is making things a little bit tougher than might ordinarily be the case. Everyone is in the same boat.”

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