Sheffield United: Takeover talk must not impede contract progress, manager warns

Sheffield United must not use the uncertainty surrounding their ownership as an excuse to delay contract talks with some of their leading names, Paul Heckingbottom has warned, after confirming he is preparing to discuss the situation again with members of the club’s hierarchy.
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Speaking ahead of Friday’s visit to Queens Park Rangers, which could see his team take another huge step towards qualifying for the Championship play-offs, Heckingbottom revealed several members of Bramall Lane’s first team squad have approached him in recent days to try and clarify whether or not they will be offered new deals.

David McGoldrick and Luke Freeman, now on loan at fellow top six hopefuls Millwall, are both sidelined by injuries as they approach the end of their present agreements.

Sheffield United manager Paul Heckingbottom clearly wants the club to accelerate their contract talks with existing squad members: Simon Bellis / SportimageSheffield United manager Paul Heckingbottom clearly wants the club to accelerate their contract talks with existing squad members: Simon Bellis / Sportimage
Sheffield United manager Paul Heckingbottom clearly wants the club to accelerate their contract talks with existing squad members: Simon Bellis / Sportimage
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Heckingbottom, who last week discovered that American businessman Henry Mauriss wants to purchase United from HRH Prince Abdullah bin Musa’ad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, confirmed it is vital United confront the issue now rather than wait until the fate of Mauriss’ takeover attempt is known.

“We need to yes, it’s another issue on the agenda,” the United manager said, revealing an investigation has also been launched into the number of fitness issues his side have suffered this term. “We want to be building, we want to be laying down the groundwork.

“We have to make good decisions for the benefit of the squad next season. We want to make good decisions now because, on the back of those, someone else will benefit five or 10 years down the line.”

Sixth in the table with only two matches remaining, Heckingbottom stated when news of Mauriss’ interest first broke that United must remain “fully focused” on football at such a critical stage of the campaign. But both the timing of the media tycoon’s approach to Prince Abdullah, combined with the slow progress made by the present regime when it comes to internal housekeeping, means the 44-year-old is struggling to shift the narrative back to sporting matters.

Sheffield United duo David McGoldrick and Lys Mousset are both out of contract this summer: Simon Bellis/ SportimageSheffield United duo David McGoldrick and Lys Mousset are both out of contract this summer: Simon Bellis/ Sportimage
Sheffield United duo David McGoldrick and Lys Mousset are both out of contract this summer: Simon Bellis/ Sportimage
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Despite confusion with regards to exactly how far Mauriss’ negotiations with Prince Abdullah and his representatives have advanced, combined with the absence of any evidence that proof of funding has been provided, United recently took advantage of a clause entitling them to retain Billy Sharp’s services for another 12 months. However, as well as McGoldrick and Freeman, Chris Basham and Ben Osborn are still unsure about whether they will remain in South Yorkshire beyond the summer.

Although Heckingbottom has refused to publicly complain about the situation since being appointed on a permanent basis in November - something which has prevented United’s board from facing even fiercer criticism for their failure to properly address the contract issue - he did remind that “uncertainty” is one of the greatest obstacles to success during a spell in caretaker charge last season.

Heckingbottom, who has previously experienced regime change at both Barnsley and Hibernian, said: “With the possibility (of a takeover), this would be the third one I've been through and I understand it would affect things. We need to be making good decisions for the club.

“We are in a critical period, We’ve got players who are injured and out of contract and who want to know what their situation is. I don’t want anything hanging over or for distractions to get in the way.”