What Sheffield United want, need and might get during January transfer window

The January sales will revitalise some teams. They are set to weaken others. The only thing for certain is that the division, and its rankings, are definitely going to be affected by events over the course of the next three-and-a-half weeks.

Not so long ago, people were being warned to expect no activity at Bramall Lane. Paul Heckingbottom and his staff, having seen their squad make an impressive start to the campaign, were publicly briefing that their priority was to ensure it remained intact come February 4th’s visit to neighbours Rotherham.

Suddenly, however, the parameters have changed. Reda Khadra, whose loan from Brighton and Hove Albion is scheduled to run to the summer, has been told he can return to the south coast providing a replacement is sourced. Which means, with the German under-21 international struggling to make an impression in South Yorkshire, United and their manager are suddenly in the market for a new player.

The Star’s James Shield identifies some of the major issues facing Heckingbottom and his board of directors during the winter transfer window and explains the issues behind them, with United sitting second in the table and nine points clear of third following Monday’s draw with Queens Park Rangers.

What do Sheffield United want?

In short, a new attacker. Khadra wants to go and, given how the first half of the season has unfolded, you can’t blame either him or United for wanting to terminate the deal prematurely. Given the pressure on Heckingbottom’s budget, it makes no sense for him to commit a sizeable portion of it towards keeping someone who has only even been on the periphery of his starting eleven. Khadra needs football and Brighton, whose top-flight status means they don’t need the money, are only seeing the value of their asset diminishing on a week by week basis.

The interesting thing will be seeing what type of forward Heckingbottom moves for. The obvious move would be someone of a similar ilk to the 21-year-old. But then, given the lack of opportunities Khadra has enjoyed, would this be the right choice? Probably not. Billy Sharp, who is leading United’s frontline at present, turns 37 shortly, Daniel Jebbison has yet to realise his potential and, given Oli McBurnie’s fragile fitness, Rhian Brewster’s absence through injury has left United desperately short of centre-forwards. Will Osula has been brought back from Derby County but it is asking a lot of someone with only six starts to their name to lead the line for a side with designs on automatic promotion.

What are the reasons behind Reda Khadra’s struggles?

The player must take his share of the blame, with some of his teammates appearing to grow frustrated with his work ethic and tactical discipline during a trip to Bristol City earlier this term. But United can not absolve themselves of any responsibility either. A superb performer during a similar spell with Blackburn Rovers during the previous campaign, Khadra is obviously a talent. But he has been granted precious few chances to show it in his preferred position. And when he has, such as during September’s win over Swansea City, United’s rotation policy meant he spent all of their next game watching from the bench.

So why was Khadra signed in the first place?

Heckingbottom will never admit this publicly. And you can’t blame him for that either. But one suspects, given the focus he placed on acquiring midfielders of different persuasions over the summer with Tommy Doyle and James McAtee arriving from Manchester City, that he thought Sander Berge would be sold in order to recoup some cash. The Norwegian came much closer to departing than many people realised at the time, with Club Brugge and Chelsea among those interested. The narrative that United’s hierarchy blocked his sale probably isn’t entirely accurate either.

When Berge remained and McAtee began to find his feet, it was always going to mean Khadra’s opportunities were limited.

Are any players likely to leave?

Maybe, with Iliman Ndiaye impressing for Senegal at the World Cup and Berge, understandably, also harbouring ambitions of playing at the highest level. And by that I mean in European as well as domestic competition.

When Heckingbottom talks about protecting the team in order to chase the biggest prize on offer to United, he is also - in very diplomatic fashion - making his stance on this abundantly clear to anyone who cares to listen: If Ndiaye or Berge go now, it has got nothing to do with me.

Is the proposd takeover situation influencing the manager’s plans?

Undoubtedly, yes. Discussing Khadra’s situation ahead of tomorrow’s FA Cup tie at Millwall, Heckingbottom admitted he would only let him return to Brighton if he “can” get someone else.

If he had any slack available in terms of finance, the 45-year-old, an eloquent speaker, would have chosen his words differently.

With Prince Abdullah bin Musa’ad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in talks with relinquish control of the club, almost certainly because his access to funding is running dry, United would recruit what Heckingbottom needs and then deal with Khadra. But they aren’t doing that. And when you look at events elsewhere behind the scenes, such as the continued delay in opening the new pitch at the Randox Health Academy, the clues are there.

Could United bring in more than one new face?

Possibly. If Ndiaye does depart, which is by no means certain, Heckingbottom would be granted a percentage of his fee to use on bolstering his options.

United are in a difficult position regarding Ndiaye because, having allowed their grip on contracts to loosen, his value will never be higher than now. Their joint-leading goalscorer enters the final year of his agreement shortly. But selling him now would be ridiculous unless United are in a life or death situation financially.