Sheffield United make key transfer decision despite surprise Nottingham Forest U-turn and Leicester City deal

Sheffield United had already made their move to bring Mason Holgate to Bramall Lane when Nottingham Forest performed a dramatic deadline-day U-turn over their captain Joe Worrall, The Star understands. United this evening confirmed the capture of Holgate on loan from Everton, with his time at Southampton in the Championship cut short.

As we reported earlier in the month Worrall was another player of interest for the Blades - alongside Holgate's Everton teammate Ben Godfrey and Harry Souttar, the giant Leicester City centre-half - but Forest were initially not willing to loan out the defender, especially to a potential Premier League relegation rival.

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Officials at the City Ground instead demanded a transfer fee, reported to be in the region of £6m, if they were to let Worrall leave in this window. With United focusing on loans, that demand saw them move on to other targets and line up a deal for Holgate - before Forest changed their minds earlier today and decided Worrall could leave on loan after all.

By that point, however, the ball was already rolling in terms of Doncaster-born Holgate returning to South Yorkshire. He was shown around United's Shirecliffe base earlier today after competing the second half of his medical, with the finishing touches being applied to the deal in front of the 11pm deadline.

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Various reports online today suggested that United's move for Worrall had "broken down" but in reality it was never in a position to do so. Premier League rules limit top-flight teams to just two loans at any one time and with Manchester City starlet James McAtee a key man at Bramall Lane, that only left one space for a defender on a temporary deal. That man is Holgate, with the 27-year-old relishing the chance to prove himself at Premier League level again after a frustrating time on loan with Southampton in the Championship.

Crucially, Holgate was keen to grasp the opportunity offered to him at Bramall Lane - something that could not be levelled at Souttar, whose representatives vetoed a move to United and play a part in a second successive relegation scrap following last season's return to the Championship with Leicester, who were open to let their man join the Blades.