Chris Wilder sets out Sheffield United transfer stance after Gus Hamer, Sydie Peck sales suggestion
Chris Wilder says Sheffield United may have to consider selling key players this summer as financial pressures grow - but he insists the Blades should only do business at the right price.
Chris Wilder has admitted he is “OK” with the prospect of losing some key Sheffield United players in sales in the close-season - on one key condition. The Blades are bracing themselves for life without parachute payments, with the Premier League tap officially being turned off this summer.
The state of football clubs up and down the pyramid can best be described as perilous in most cases, with United one of the few Championship clubs to post a profit in their most recent set of accounts.
That would have been a significant loss, though, but for a combination of player sales and owner funding, with the COH Sports group lending United £11m on an interest-free basis to cover the deficit.
Player sales appear inevitable this summer, with a weekend report from journalist Alan Nixon claiming that United’s plan is to cash in on Gus Hamer and Sydie Peck to fund their summer rebuild.
Chris Wilder sets out Sheffield United transfer stance after Gus Hamer, Sydie Peck sales suggestion
Hamer appears a more reasonable departure, as he prepares to enter the final 12 months of his contract in the summer and is yet to indicate that he will sign a new one to remain at Bramall Lane.
But the Blades are in a better position when it comes to the England U21 international Peck, who is under contract until 2028. His rapid rise to prominence in the Championship has not gone unnoticed elsewhere, with Nottingham Forest amongst his admirers.
And Wilder, asked for his response to the claim ahead of tomorrow’s clash with Blackburn Rovers at Bramall Lane, said: “I's the same as it always is. If we have to sell a player or two, then we will do. As long as we don't give them away. That's my take on it.
“If we have to raise money, we have to raise money. The owners put a lot of money into buying the football club. And they put a lot of money in in terms of the investment at the start of the season as well.
“And if that's the case, that's the case. I'm OK with that but we can't develop these players and just let them go for nothing. We can't buy players and let them go cheaply, or not at the right price for us.
“But the majority of clubs in this division are at the stage where we have to recuperate. You've all seen the numbers, , you've all seen how difficult it is in the Championship with the salary cost management or whatever the letters stand for.
“So, I work in tandem with Steve Bettis and work in tandem with the owners to do what's right for the football club in the short, medium and long term. But, we're hopeful that we keep the majority of our players. But if we have to sell and the price is right, we'll do that and carry on from that point.”