Sheffield United are looking to bolster their squad with the returns of former players Ben Brereton Diaz and Oli McBurnie as they target an immediate return to the Premier League. However, it is looking like they will face mixed fortunes in their attempts to bring back the duo.
According to Football League World and reporter Alan Nixon, the Blades are closing to agreeing a deal to bring Chile international Brereton Diaz back to the club for a second loan spell after he spent the second half of last season at Bramall Lane.
However, their attempts to also bring back another forward Oli McBurnie look set to be scuppered with Spanish side Las Palmas reluctant to let the former Scotland international leave the club this month.
Why are Sheffield United targeting strikers?
The margins in the Championship promotion race are fine ones with the top three clubs currently separated by just three points, with Sunderland five points off the top with a game in hand- so a prolific forward could be the difference between automatic promotion and the play-offs.
Sheffield United’s top scorers so far this season are Gustavo Hamer and summer signing Tyrese Campbell with six goals each, followed by Kiefer Moore with five. The top ten scorers in the Championship all have at least nine goals so this is a clear area for improvement.
At the other end of the pitch the situation is much better. Goalkeeper Michael Cooper currently has 14 clean sheets for the season, a mark only bettered by Burnley’s James Trafford who has 16.
Brereton Diaz looks to recapture form
Brereton Diaz initially moved to Bramall Lane on loan from Villareal a year ago today. He scored six goals in 16 appearances in all competitions but was unable to help prevent the Blades making an immediate return to the Championship.
He joined Southampton on a permanent basis in the summer but has yet to get off the mark in 13 appearances for the South Coast club and could return to Yorkshire this month in an attempt to recapture the form he showed at Blackburn Rovers.
During the 2021-22 season he scored 22 goals in 38 appearances at Ewood Park, with 22 in 37 in the league. The following season he followed that up with 14 in 43 games in the league. That form also earned him international recognition.
McBurnie return less likely
When Sheffield United’s new owners Steven Rosen and Helmy Eltoukhy met with manager Chris Wilder to discuss transfer targets, another former striker in McBurnie was also on the list. He spent five years at the club from 2019 before moving to Spain.
However, Sheffield Star’s Danny Hall is reporting that Las Palmas are unlikely to let McBurnie leave despite him not finding the net in 14 La Liga appearances so far this season, only netting twice in 15 in all competitions.
McBurnie made 159 appearances for the Blades across five years, scoring 29 goals and was part of the side which finished ninth in the Premier League in 2019-20 and secured promotion from the Championship in 2023 as runners-up.
Injuries a concern for Sheffield United
Another reason for targeting forwards in the January transfer window comes from injuries. The Blades were already without six players for yesterday’s trip to Watford and there is now a further doubt over Hamer.
After scoring the opener in yesterday’s win at Vicarage Road, Hamer limped off and is now out of Thursday’s FA Cup tie with Cardiff and is a doubt for their next Championship game, against Norwich City on 18 January.
Wilder is hoping to have a number of his injured players back in time for the Norwich game, but he won’t want to take any chances.