Chris Wilder hails "huge player" for Sheffield United as he hopes for key boost for Brighton clash

Chris Wilder had admitted that Sheffield United need to keep Oli McBurnie "fit and healthy" for the rest of the season after describing the striker as a "huge player" in terms of the Blades' Premier League survival hopes. The Scottish international has missed United's last two games with a calf issue, with United hoping for some positive news ahead of Sunday's clash with Brighton and Hove Albion at Bramall Lane.

McBurnie has been limited to just 15 appearances so far this season but is United's top-scoring striker with four goals, level with Cameron Archer and one behind James McAtee. McBurnie has also added two assists and offers a real focal point to United's attack when he is on the pitch, capable of dropping deep and linking play as well as engaging with opposition centre-halves when United go down a more aerial route.

The latest fitness setback will be a real frustration for both club and player, who is out of contract in the summer and has been offered a new deal to remain at Bramall Lane. A recent trip to Dubai to see a specialist during the winter break looked to have cleared up McBurnie's troublesome groin issue before a tight calf kept him out of the 5-0 hammering by Aston Villa earlier this month.

Wilder initially hoped that his absence in that game would see him available for the following week's trip to Luton Town but again McBurnie's name did not feature amongst the matchday 20, as goals from Archer and McAtee helped United to a vital 3-1 victory at Kenilworth Road. "We've had to go deep, in terms of the issues he's had," said Wilder of McBurnie recently.

Sign up for our free SUFC newsletters now

"Going to see the specialist cleared his head from a mentality point of view. He's a huge player for us, one the younger players look up to and he takes the weight off the players. He's still 27, so he's still got some good years ahead of him as well. The supporters still enjoy watching him. The honesty of his play is key to him being a good player for us, and we need to keep him fit and healthy and producing as well.

United handed contract warning after Liverpool transfer links

Now in his fourth season at Bramall Lane, McBurnie believes he has grown as both a player and a person since his big-money move from Swansea back in 2019 and is due to become a father this year. Asked if he has seen McBurnie mature in his time as a Blade, Wilder smiled: "When he got sent off at Burnley, you can sometimes debate that but there's always different ways of looking at it.

"I've always had a brilliant relationship with Oli. I know what makes him tick and what he's like as a personality. I think with age he gets better. He knows the game more, and I've got to say if you speak to centre-halves - even in the Premier League and at Championship level, where he made his name - he's a tough opponent. He's a difficult opponent.

"I remember when we signed him, he absolutely smashed O'Connell, Egan and Basham all over the place, playing up front on his own. He's a difficult opponent, he's an honest guy and he's a character in the group as well. He knows what we're about as a football club. With age he matures, with his family life hopefully he matures off the back of that as well, and hopefully he has a successful second part of his career. He's going into that time now, into his thirties, where he wants to maximise that in terms of his performances and what he achieves."