Sheffield United will bring something very special to the Premier League

That is the aim of manager Paul Heckingbottom, whose squad regained its place at the top table of English football last season by winning automatic promotion from the Championship.

Speaking earlier this month, Heckingbottom expressed his hopes that United’s presence in the game’s most glamorous competition can help project South Yorkshire's image as one of the sport’s most important and historic centres across the globe.

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Central to that plan are the United supporters, with the 45-year-old stressing they have a huge role to perform in the club’s bid to establish itself at the highest level.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again,” Heckingbottom told The Star, “Our fans don’t understand how important they are for us. There’s times during games when I’ve felt them change the entire course of a match, either by getting right behind our lads when they’ve been going for it, helping them through a tough period or just by intimidating the opposition.

“So many others (manager) have mentioned that to me after we’ve met. So that tells you something. It tells you what I’m saying is true.”

“Honestly, there’s times down there on the touchline when it’s given me goosebumps,” he added. “You just want to stand back and soak it all up, even though you have to stay involved in the game.

“I think we can bring something really special to the table, in terms of that connection, next season, definitely.”

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Heckingbottom is now beginning the process of bolstering the options at his disposal after receiving a transfer budget from owner Prince Abdullah bin Musa’ad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who could shortly receive an offer to sell the club from one of several US investors to express an interest in Bramall Lane.

After attracting admiring glances from United last season, Nottingham Forest’s Lewis O’Brien has again inevitably been linked but a goalscorer and a centre-half also feature on Heckingbottom’s wanted list despite the limited budget at his disposal.

“I think, with that link and the atmosphere here, we’ve got something special that we can offer,” Heckingbottom said.

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