Sheffield United: Boss believes Nottingham Forest and Olympiakos target Max Lowe is ready for lift off
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In what could be a pivotal moment in his career at Bramall Lane, the 25-year-old’s maiden effort during Wednesday night’s victory over Sunderland capped an accomplished display which saw him impress both defensively and also going forward.
Linked with both Olympiakos and Nottingham Forest, the team he helped win promotion from the Championship after joining Steve Cooper’s side on loan last year, Lowe has struggled to replicate the form he produced in the east Midlands since returning to South Yorkshire.
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Hide AdBut Heckingbottom was delighted with the defender’s contribution against the visitors from the North-East and, speaking ahead of this weekend’s meeting with Blackburn Rovers, believes he is now beginning to grasp what United’s coaching staff want from him.
“Fair play to Max, because we’ve spoken about changing his position on the pitch quite often,” Heckingbottom told The Star. “We don’t want our wing-backs hugging the touchline all the time and he didn’t do that.
“There were a couple of moments when he found a way in behind, taking a different route than the usual one if you like, and that was really good to see. I thought he played really well.”
Having established a 1-0 lead courtesy of Anel Ahmedhodzic’s header, which came about moments after Dan Neil had been shown a red card for hauling down James McAtee, United stretched their advantage over Sunderland when Oliver Norwood, Sander Berge and the Bosnia and Herzegovina international combined to create the opening which Lowe converted.
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Hide Ad“I didn’t realise at first that it was Max who scored it,” admitted Heckingbottom, who later saw Lynden Gooch pull one back for Alex Neil’s men. “The fact that he got into that position was brilliant, right in front of goal, because it shows he’s taking on board what we need from him.
“Genuinely, I was really pleased for Max, delighted in fact, for a whole host of reasons.”
Signed from Derby County by Heckingbottom’s predecessor Chris Wilder, as part of the deal which also saw Jayden Bogle arrive at United, Lowe was used sparingly before being placed with Forest.
However, his performances there prompted Cooper to try and capture him on a permanent basis before Olympiakos, who are also owned by Evangelos Marinakis, expressed an interest in taking him to Greece.
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Hide AdAppointed in November, when Wilder’s successor Slavisa Jokanovic was axed for a series of disappointing results and disagreements with the board, Heckingbottom insisted it was inevitable that Lowe would take time to adjust to life back at United.
“Max has missed a lot of time here, we want him to bring that confidence and freedom he showed at Forest,” Heckingbottom said. “Two of the really pleasing things I’ve seen from him are the goal, of course, and also watching him drift in off that touchline.
“For me, he’s like a new player coming in because he’s never worked with us before.”