Sheffield United news: West Brom ace hospitalised, Sky Sports’ EFL expert backs Blades against Huddersfield

The 30-year-old was missing from the Albion side that was beaten 2-0 by Sheffield United on Wednesday, with Bruce confirming the reason for his absence after the match.

He told reporters: “Bartley unfortunately at the minute is in hospital,” Bruce explained.

“We’re hoping it’s obviously nothing too serious but he’s got some sort of bug - not covid, we’ve checked for that.

“But he’s got some sort of virus which, we’ll see, we’ll see how he is.

“It’s a concern, of course, but he’s in the right place.

“There was concern enough to get him checked over thoroughly because he had a huge temperature spike yesterday which wasn’t great.”

Bartley has made 27 appearances in the Championship for West Brom this season.

Meanwhile, Sky Sports’ EFL pundit David Prutton has backed Sheffield United to beat Huddersfield Town this weekend.

Prutton said the Blades are closing in on the top six ‘with menace’ after their four straight win and added: “They are the team to watch out for now. And I think they may make it five wins in a row here.”