Gus Hamer Sheffield United position reiterated ahead of inevitable January transfer speculation
Gus Hamer Sheffield United position reiterated ahead of inevitable January transfer speculation
Gus Hamer sent a reminder, if one were needed, of his undoubted quality in Sheffield United’s 3-0 victory over Birmingham City on Saturday, quickly silencing any question marks about his influence at Bramall Lane. The United No.8 scored one and set up another against the Blues.
That took his tally to two goals and two assists in the five games since he returned from injury last month, offering a huge boost to the Blades as they look to mount a charge up the table in the second half of the season.
The biggest headache for Chris Wilder in that period may be how to get Hamer into the side, with his fellow creative spark Callum O’Hare also in good form. The two were paired together behind lone striker Patrick Bamford, to good effect, against the Blues but it is a brilliant dilemma for the Blades chief to have.
Hamer’s return to form will do little to dampen speculation about his future come the turn of the year, especially when he enters the danger zone of the final 18 months of his deal. United have explored a new deal with the player’s representatives and the feedback will shape what they do next.
But Wilder is keen to keep the reigning Championship player of the year at Bramall Lane. “He’s been out for a while and we’ve got to get him up to speed, but he showed what he can do,” Wilder said.
”Obviously he took a big challenge just in front of us [from former Blade Tommy Doyle, which saw him sent off]. But he didn't want to come off. He wanted to stay on the pitch. He's definitely got that.
Chris Wilder reiterates Gus Hamer Sheffield United position ahead of inevitable January transfer speculation
“Getting him to the top of his game [is key]. I’ve got difficult decisions to make as well. The players who started were the lucky ones. They had the ability to put right what went wrong at West Brom on Friday night.”
One of the big talking points this term has been whether O’Hare and Hamer are capable of playing together but they proved last season, O’Hare’s first at United since making the move from Coventry City, that they can.
“We did the stats on last season,” Wilder said. “People talk about them playing together but we won enough games last season to know that combination works as well. They played with a stretch player in Tyrese [Campbell] and a target in Kieffer Moore.
“We switched it up and Gus and Cal play really well together. But Gus will take all the plaudits [against Birmingham] for his performance.”
Asked how important Hamer could be in the second half of the season, Wilder admitted: “Everybody's got a huge role to play. But I'm not looking too far ahead. Maybe I look too far ahead on Friday night [in defeat at West Brom].
“Maybe thinking: ‘If we win here, we might go this many points behind.’ I apologise to the players on that. For me now, it's just looking at that next game. We've got a tough one at Wrexham.
“Happy Christmas to everybody, to all United fans and whatever. We've got to reward them for the backing they've given us with another positive performance on Boxing Day.”