Jamie Shackleton enthused by Sheffield United "rebuild" process after Leeds United endorsements

Jamie Shackleton believes that the excitement of Sheffield United’s rebuild phase this summer will make the Blades an even more attractive club for fellow new recruits to join. The former Leeds man signed a three-year deal to become United’s first summer signing last week.

With United kicking off their season in just over four weeks, there is plenty more work on the recruitment front to be done as boss Chris Wilder looks to replace the 13 faces that have departed following relegation back to the Championship. That number is essentially 15 including Cameron Archer, due to return to Aston Villa, and out-of-contract striker Oli McBurnie, although the latter may still return to United later this summer.

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United are close to unveiling former Norwich City man Sam McCallum as their second summer signing and have targeted free agent Callum O’Hare after his release from Coventry, while Bournemouth striker Kieffer Moore is another player of big interest. The Blades are in the midst of being taken over by a US-based consortium, with a deal to buy the Blades from current owner Prince Abdullah nearing completion, and Shackleton agreed that the chance of being part of the big Blades rebuild could be an attractive one.

“The size of the club and what they’ve achieved in the past few years is unbelievable,” Shackleton said. “So that alone is a reason to join Sheffield United. But then the whole new rebuild phase that’s going on is also very exciting, and I think everything will slot into place nicely. It was good to get back in and get training. I did miss the first two days, but I managed to pick it up and get up to speed.”

A boyhood Leeds fan, Shackleton made the decision to turn down the offer of a new deal at Elland Road to pursue avenues elsewhere - with three links between the Blades and Leeds helping firm up his decision to move to Bramall Lane.

“I briefly trained with the first team at Leeds when Paul Heckingbottom was in charge, so I had a couple of sessions with him,” Shackleton said. “Neil Redfearn [later to become United Women’s manager] was also at the academy, pretty much the whole time I was coming through. And my agent, Andy Gray played here as well. So there are a few links. I’m looking forward to getting started.”