Young Sheffield United midfielder's departure on loan could signal the start of something bigger

The midfielder joins his former Bramall Lane teammate Sam Graham at Spotland, after he completed a permanent transfer to Robbie Stockdale’s side earlier this summer.

Broadbent spent time with United’s sister club Beerschot last term, although his time in Belgium was overshadowed by injury.

The 20-year-old’s switch to Greater Manchester could be significant, given the desire of Bramall Lane’s hierarchy to not only build links with some of the country’s leading names in order to source new talent themselves but also those further down the English Football League pyramid in order to develop their own home grown players.

Speaking before his departure in March, Slavisa Jokanovic’s predecessor Chris Wilder revealed a preference for working with clubs within easy commuting distance of South Yorkshire in order to prevent those placed elsewhere feeling divorced from goings-on at United.

Stockdale publicly thanked United for their approach towards Graham’s switch, with Jokanovic’s employers known to have inserted a series of performance related and sell-on clauses into the deal.

Speaking during his official unveiling at Rochdale, Broadbent confirmed discussions have been going on behind the scenes for some time.

“We finally got it over the line and I’m looking forward to the season now,” he said. “I want to try and get as many first team games as I can.”

“It’s a good club to come to in terms of developing young players,” he added. “So it was an easy decision for me.”