Sheffield United's deadline day: Priorities, dilemmas and ongoing Leeds United interest in Gus Hamer
Sheffield United’s deadline day state of play as clock ticks towards 11pm deadline
The clock is ticking towards tonight’s 11pm transfer deadline as Sheffield United get their final chance to reshape their squad until January. The Blades have signed 10 players in this window and lost even more, with Anis Slimane expected to be the latest departure when his move to Norwich City is sealed.
Boss Chris Wilder seized the chance to freshen up United’s squad with a number of contracts expiring in the summer and their work so far, after a slow start, has been good. They look strong in a number of areas but some are still a little light, with the lack of a natural left winger one glaring issue at the minute. Wilder is also understood to believe that United are light of a competitive central midfielder, to challenge current first-choice pair Oliver Arblaster and Vini Souza, and a striker who can stretch defences with pace.
As things stand, their priority may well be keeping hold of players amid interest from elsewhere in a number of their players. Gus Hamer is of interest to their Yorkshire rivals Leeds United, who made a derisory £13m offer recently and then followed it up by offering Joel Piroe in a swap deal. Leeds have privately denied our exclusive story but were expected to, rather than publicly admit that Piroe had been offered to a rival club.
The noises from Bramall Lane are that Leeds, who have brought in well over £100m this summer from player sales, will have to significantly up their offers to have a chance of landing Hamer, who showed he is still committed to United with his display at Barnsley on Tuesday night. There is still a chance Anel Ahmedhodzic leaves ahead of 11pm, with Wolves a potential destination, while Souza and Arblaster - who recently publicly committed his future to his boyhood club - have also attracted interest this window.
Although Wilder is not keen to lose anyone, he is also realistic that the situation is out of his hands and relegation from the Premier League last season leaves United vulnerable if a top club comes in with a serious offer for one of his players. But the Blades are in strong positions with a number of their key men and if any are prised away before the deadline, Wilder and his recruitment staff will look to move quickly with a ready-made replacement.
Part of the work of head scout Jamie Hoyland and head of recruitment Mikey Allen this summer has been succession planning, with the pair tasked with compiling a list of potential targets if any of the Blades’ current key men are prised away. Chris Mepham could come under consideration if Ahmedhodzic is prised away, while the Blades did not make an official offer for target Mikey Johnston of Celtic.
Defender Auston Trusty appears to be on his way out after Celtic stepped up their interest in the former Rangers target, while Leicester City striker Tom Cannon remains a player of interest for the Blades amid rival admiration from the usual suspects in the Championship.
Bournemouth’s Philip Billing was also linked with the Blades earlier this week but we understand that speculation to have been wide of the mark, with no conversations between the Blades and the Cherries about the powerful midfielder joining the Blades. Slimane is set to join Norwich, after pulling out of Tuesday’s cup defeat at Barnsley at the 11th hour.
A number of United’s promising young players have also caught the eye of clubs in Leagues One and Two this summer but are likely to be disappointed as Wilder resolves not to leave himself short of bodies for the first half of the season. Rotherham United were keen on signing Sydie Peck on loan but their manager Steve Evans admitted defeat this week, saying: “I love him. But my understanding is that he's going to stay at Sheffield United. We're not desperate to bring any player into this club. If we're going to bring a player into the club it has to be someone who offers something extra to what we've got.
“Sydie would have done that, but Chris has intimated that he's going to keep him. That's Chris's prerogative. There are one or two others we are looking at. We have to look 'in' first and make sure everyone has got a part to play. If they haven't got a part to play, maybe they need to be going out.”