With the Premier League season less than a month away teams are rapidly running out of time to complete their transfer business, and Sheffield United are a side that still have a lot to do.
Sheffield United might have the strongest defence in the Championship last season but that has not stopped them being priced as favourites for relegation from the Premier League – 1.67 with many leading bookmakers according to gamblingsites.com. However, their ability to score goals could mean that they are good for BTTS tips in the coming season – their chaotic overlapping central defenders approach might see them create many goalscoring opportunities as well as leaving the door open at the back.
Fellow promoted side Norwich City, champions of the Championship last season, are priced at 1.91 meaning that the bookmakers believe Sheffield United are likely to fall short of the Canaries once again.
To have any chance of survival they need to keep recruiting.
One of the key positions for them is goalkeeper – as Dean Henderson has not returned for his expected second loan spell.
The 22-year-old was outstanding for the Blades last season only conceding 41 goals and keeping 21 clean sheets, and that form saw him called up to the England U21 squad.
He started every game for the Three Lions – as they crashed out of the European Championships at the group stage.
Henderson was brilliant in the first game denying France on numerous occasions, but he was at fault for one goal in the final match against Romania – as England finished bottom of the group.
It was expected that he would sign a new deal at Manchester United before then re-joining Chris Wilder’s side for another year; however, none of that has happened yet, and Henderson has now flown out to Singapore to meet up with the rest of the Red Devils’ squad.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has stated this is to cover some injuries to their other goalkeepers but if the Blades want to sign him this is disrupting their plans – Wilder can’t plan without his first-choice goalkeeper.
If the deal is delayed any longer Sheffield United will have to move on and look to sign another keeper; Henderson was superb for them last year and a lot of Blades fans would love him back, but they cannot wait much longer before they have to look at other options.
