Exclusive:Oli McBurnie transfer decision explained as Sheffield United hopes fade rapidly over £20m man's return
Oli McBurnie transfer decision explained with Sheffield United hopes rapidly fading over £20m man's return
Sheffield United’s hopes of luring Oli McBurnie back to Bramall Lane this summer are all but over after Hull City entered pole position to sign the former £20m man on a free transfer. The Blades had made an offer to the Scottish international ahead of the new Championship season this weekend.
But sources with knowledge of the situation have suggested that the terms on offer were not comparable to McBurnie’s other offers in the Championship, with Ipswich Town, Swansea City and Hull all in the race for his services, as well as abroad.
That situation - combined with uncertainty in the striker’s camp over whether the interest has been driven by boss Ruben Selles or those above him - has cast some doubt on whether the 29-year-old will return to Bramall Lane this summer.
There remains a chance that it happens, we understand, if United can improve on their initial offer, with McBurnie’s previous association with the Blades a powerful factor. But that appears unlikely and Hull are thought to be in the driving seat after receiving clearance from the EFL to follow up their interest in the striker, having been placed under transfer restrictions by the league earlier this summer.
Oli McBurnie transfer latest as Sheffield United hopes fade over £20m man's Bramall Lane return
Since then they have signed a number of players - including McBurnie’s former United teammate John Lundstram - while Blades fans are growing increasingly concerned about their own side’s business in the transfer market.
The Blades have signed two senior players this summer, defender Tyler Bindon and forward Louie Barry, both on loan from the Premier League and paid fees for two development players from Bulgaria, in Ehije Ukaki and Mihail Polendakov.
They are close to the loan signing of Djibril Soumare from Braga but that will only restore parity in midfield following the sale of Vini Souza earlier this summer. Kieffer Moore is also closing in on a switch across the Championship, to Wrexham, while Anel Ahmedhodzic has emerged as a target for Dutch side Feyenoord.
Bramall Lane holds a great deal of emotional attachment for McBurnie, who spent five years there after arriving in a £20m deal from Swansea in 2019. He could have stayed last summer, had United’s takeover been sorted out quicker, but ended up leaving England and moving to Spain with Las Palmas.
His deal with them contained a clause that would render him a free agent should they lose their La Liga status, which came to pass. McBurnie and his partner, who have a young child, were widely expected to return to England, with The Star revealing recently that United had been in touch about a return.
That materialised into concrete interest but on reduced terms which were not comparable to the other Championship sides vying for the services of a player who scored 15 goals in his last season at second-tier level, and vitally commands no transfer fee.