Will the Blades show steel in their bid for an instant return to the Premier League, or will they prove to be blunt once again? Sheffield United season preview

After two years of absence, Sheffield United find themselves back in the English second tier after a dismal campaign in the Premier League last term.

Last year’s bottom club are under new management with the target of making their return to the Championship a short stay. However, the squad looks all but identical to the one that was relegated.

As far as the bookies’ odds go, the Blades are one of this year’s favourites for promotion but will have plenty to prove as we’re looking at the prospect of one of the most competitive Championship seasons to date.

Manager

Whilst Sheffield United’s relegation to the Championship was no surprise, ex-manager Chris Wilder’s departure in March arguably was.

It was thought that the boyhood Blades fan would remain in charge and oversee the South Yorkshire club’s bid to return to the Premier League, however, there were other plans.

Now, ex-Watford and Fulham manager Slavisa Jokanovic is in charge having put pen to paper on a three-year deal in late May.

It was impressive that the United board were able to get their new man through the door as early as they did, especially one of the Serbian’s elk having led his previous Championship sides to promotions.

The 52-year-old is an impressive coup and it will certainly be fascinating to see whether or not he can enjoy a third promotion with a third club in the English second tier.

Transfers

Yawn. This area has been nothing but lacklustre with the Blades yet to make a signing at the time of writing. It is expected, however, that 23-year-old Sampdoria midfielder, who was once on the books of Leeds United, Ronaldo Vieria will join on a season-long loan this week.

Premier League loans look to be the priority for Slavisa Jokanovic, who has now had a decent amount of time to assess his squad and identify the holes that need plugging. Expect signings later in the transfer window.

As for departures, United have still been able to hang onto their two most valuable assets, Aaron Ramsdale and Sander Berge.

The former was subject to a rejected bid of around £18m from Arsenal who are believed to be planning another swoop for the England goalkeeper.

As for Berge, the Norwegian has recently returned from injury having missed a significant amount of the Premier League season last term. It was reported that the Gunners were also interested in the 23-year-old, but Serie A outfit Napoli lead the race.

Should both players leave this window, Jokanovic will be granted a mouth-watering transfer kitty…he’ll just need enough time to spend it. For now, both players are happy and are staying put.

Key Player

When you analyse Sheffield United’s squad, it looks all but identical to the one that both excelled in the top-flight in 2019/20 and crumbled last season.

The likes of John Egan, Chris Basham, John Fleck, Oli McBurnie, David McGoldrick, George Baldock and a handful of others are still around, all of which have invaluable Championship experience from previous seasons in their career.

There are other players such as Rhian Brewster, Lys Mousset and Oliver Burke who could certainly impress this campaign…it’s a challenge to pin down one player.

However, I’m going to identify David McGoldrick as the current key player given the near 100% certainty that the 33-year-old will be a Sheffield United player come September.

The striker was one of the shining lights in a depressingly dim season last term, scoring eight Premier League goals. To put that into context, the entire team as a collective scored 20 league goals.

McGoldrick was also a key asset the season the Blades won promotion, scoring 15 Championship goals. He’s done it before and could certainly repeat past pastures.

Youth Prospect

Again, a tricky task to identify one player. Daniel Jebbison became the youngest player to score on his first start in the Premier League towards the end of last season, but the 18-year-old has attracted the interest of many suitors in League One who are working towards taking the striker on loan.

For me, one to look out for is 21-year-old midfielder, Regan Slater.

Fresh from an impressive loan spell at Hull City, where the Gleadless-born youngster made 27 appearances in League One as part of the Tigers’ push for the title, there’s certainly room for the midfielder to be accommodated at the time of writing.

However, a month ago Slater’s former loan side were reportedly “desperate” to re-sign the Englishman with Jokanovic wanting the opportunity to watch the midfielder himself.

It may well be that he goes to Hull this window and I’ve just made a fool out of myself but Slater is certainly a bright prospect.

Fan opinion

Founder of the Sheffield United fan channel  “Sheff United Way” Nick (@IngoodNick on Twitter) was kind enough to answer some questions and share his thoughts on the upcoming season…

How are you feeling going into the new season?

“Nervous as always but quietly confident with the team we have and the gaffer in charge.”

A lack of signings…is that a concern?

“A lack of signings doesn’t worry me in the slightest. As I am writing this we still have Berge and Ramsdale which fees like a win just to keep hold of them and with us still holding onto the vast majority of the Blades players that finished ninth in the Premier League in 2019/2020. I don’t think we need to strengthen the squad necessarily. However, adding one or two exciting, attacking players before the transfer window shuts would be encouraging.”

What have you made of United’s pre-season preparations?

“I would have liked to have seen us play a couple more friendlies as we have done in previous seasons, but with the COVID-19 situation it’s understandable and the same for all clubs. In the two games we have played, I’ve been very pleased with how we’ve kept the ball and opened teams up.”

Do you believe that Slavisa Jokanovic can be the man to take Sheffield United back to the Premier League at the first time of asking?

“I believe SJ ‘can’ be the man to take us back to the Premier League, but we’ve seen lots of managers with great CVs over the years fail to achieve their goals. Maybe I’m a pessimist in regards to Sheffield United managers but I’ve liked everything SJ has done since joining the club and am excited to watch some attacking, possession-based football.”

How do you think the season will play out?

“We’ve got a tough start to the campaign and in years gone by SJ is notorious for having shaky starts but finishing with a bang so I can see that happening again this season. My prediction is that the Blades will finish second (we never win anyway).”

Keep an eye on Sheffield United this season, it’s bound to be a fascinating campaign.

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