James Shield's Sheffield United Column: This is how I'd deal with the John Lundstram situation

“He’s taken ownership of his career, and that’s great to see,” the Sheffield United manager said, referring to the youngster’s decision to swap a comfortable and, dare I say it, lucrative existence at Anfield for the more earthy confines of Bramall Lane. “He knows what he wants and he’s made that decision for himself. That speaks volumes. Well, at least it does for me.”

Although Wilder was talking about United’s new record signing, who is likely to make his second start when Manchester City visit South Yorkshire this weekend, he could easily have been referring to midfielder John Lundstram. In fact, after The Star revealed on Tuesday that United have told the midfielder he can leave in January having failed to agree a new contract, one wonders if Wilder actually did have him in mind as he made that observation about Brewster? Was it, as I suspect, a coded message to the 26-year-old who has spent around 12 months trying and failing to identify some common ground with the Premier League club?

I’ve got none whatsoever with those who will try and assassinate Lundstram’s character following the latest development in a saga which, to be perfectly frank, has been dragging on for far too long now. Both he and his agency, who also appear to represent Brewster and John Egan, are perfectly entitled to demand whatever they want from either United or any potential future employer. Equally, folk looking to hire Lundstram - or in this case retain his services - are also within their rights to say ‘no’ to their requests. Which, and you don’t have to have been sat around the negotiating table to fathom this bit out, is what United clearly have done.

Let’s not dress things up or gloss over anything. The stumbling block is clearly money. Lundstram’s representative will have a calculated a figure they believe their client is worth. United have done likewise, and the two don’t match. Hence the deadlock.

Just as some commentators believe United should simply pay up and have done with it, it’s worth pointing out the issues doing so might raise. I’m guessing, (and I stress guessing), that the offer United have made to Lundstram would make him one of the highest earning members of Wilder’s squad. But while he is an important player, I wouldn’t describe him as the most important at the manager’s disposal. With Jack O’Connell and John Fleck both nursing injuries, that title probably belongs to John Egan right now.

Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that Lundstram’s demands would see him become the best recompensed footballers on United’s books. The notion that finance is a constant source of friction in dressing rooms is a myth. If Lionel Messi strolled through the doors clutching a deal worth £1m a week, no one - not Egan, not Fleck, not Sander Berge or Billy Sharp - would bat an eyelid. Because they’d accept he was worth it and that his presence would almost certainly ensure they received every performance related bonus they could possibly get. Problems do start to arise, however, when people believe they aren’t properly positioned on the salary merit table. Wilder and his coaching staff clearly do value Lundstram, because they want to keep him. But they must ensure pay structures reflect contributions on the pitch and, on recent performances, I’d find it impossible to make a case that Lundstram is a vital cog in the United machine.

Brilliant at the start of last season, the bang average, (by his own high standards), displays Lundstram is delivering now suggests the situation is having a detrimental effect upon his personal game. Admittedly, as recent results highlight, those around him are not in the best of form either with last Saturday’s defeat by Jurgen Klopp’s side the fifth United have suffered in their opening six matches of the new campaign.

Wilder was clearly convinced of Lundstram’s professionalism at the start of the season, and has selected him in all of his starting elevens since competition resumed a month or so ago.

"I want the fans to know, I only pick people who are prepared to give everything for this club,” he said, during a training camp in Scotland. “I think people know what I think of this place and so, if he’s in there, then that should tell you all you need to know.”

But the longer Lundstram refuses to put pen to paper, the more difficult it gets to argue he is 100 per cent committed to United. Because, if he is even considering the possibility of moving elsewhere, then he can’t be. That’s not a dig. Merely a statement of fact. It does, though, create a problem given that United’s whole modus operandi under Wilder revolves around absolute dedication from those involved.

For that reason alone, unless Lundstram has a change of heart, I think it’s best if there is a parting of the ways when the transfer market reopens. Lundstram might have to be involved until Fleck recovers. But, from that moment on, I’d allow him to focus on trying to find a club willing to pay him what he feels he is worth, while United can look to recoup some of the investment they made when they purchased him from Oxford three years ago before Lundstram becomes a free agent in the summer. That seems the most sensible course of action all round.

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