Sheffield United will still believe they have what it takes to pip Leeds United to the Championship title as Daniel Farke’s Whites begin to show some visible chinks in their armour.
The well-oiled Leeds machine has come unstuck recently with a defeat to Portsmouth taking everyone in the second tier by surprise, but Farke’s men have since recovered to return to the top of the division with a slender two point advantage over the Blades.
Yet, nothing can be taken for granted in the unpredictable nature of the EFL’s elite league, as Chris Wilder and Co attempt to leapfrog their West Yorkshire foes between now and the close of May.
Whilst the Blades do boast a standout attack, Wilder will have been left equally impressed by his defence making the step back down to the second tier, especially after a disastrous relegation saw them leak a jaw-dropping 104 goals.
Sheffield United's standout defenders
The South Yorkshire outfit were way out of their depth last campaign, with the return of the much-loved 57-year-old to the Bramall Lane dug-out during the season not enough to stop an inevitable relegation from happening.
Now, any lingering pain from slipping down to the Championship has been forgotten about, with the Blades only shipping 28 goals from 37 league clashes.
The promotion chasers have been boosted by the addition of new shot-stopper Michael Cooper with the ex-Plymouth Argyle goalkeeper an inspired pick-up from Devon, considering he has kept a hefty 18 clean sheets across 35 league matches.
Moreover, away from new additions, faces such as experienced centre-back Jack Robinson have found a fresh lease of life, with the 31-year-old winning 5.3 duels on average when featuring.
United did have to sign Rob Holding on a loan deal to add to their somewhat threadbare options at the back, but there will be no real regrets that they didn’t take a punt on Ipswich Town man Luke Woolfenden instead, knowing they have a colossus already in South Yorkshire.
Indeed, the promotion hopefuls were reportedly keen on adding the Tractor Boys defender to their ranks in January, but no such deal would come to fruition.
It wasn’t just the Blades that Woolfenden was linked with, as some reports declared there was interest from Inter Miami, a team owned by David Beckham and featuring the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.
The Ipswich centre-back spoke about those rumours in a recent interview.
“There is always interest. I think that’s part and parcel of being a footballer. The Inter Miami one was a bit wide of the mark because otherwise I’m not sure I’d be sitting here! I’d be playing with [Lionel] Messi! So I’m not sure that one was true, but there was certainly interest from elsewhere.”
Messi or Tom Cannon? Instead, he’s still in the Premier League playing alongside Liam Delap and Co.
That shouldn’t frustrate Wilder too much though. Here’s why…
Sheffield United's "elite" star is worth more than Woolfenden
This could have been a worthwhile purchase – considering Woolfenden is still fresh off entering into the top flight with Kieran McKenna’s men – but Wilder already has Anel Ahmedhodzic at his disposal and the 26-year-old is worth a great deal more than the Ipswich-born centre-back.
Moreover, away from the likes of Robinson and Cooper already being mentioned, the Bosnian has been an absolute rock at the back this campaign for his side, with a well-timed header in February one of three goals he’s contributed to in the Championship.
This isn’t a one-off standout season from the 25-year-old, however, with the “elite” defender – as he’s been labelled by football analyst Ben Mattinson – one figure who managed to cover himself in some glory during his team’s dire relegation, with two goals picked up alongside winning 4.5 duels per Premier League match.
Looking at the table above, it’s clear that United hit absolute gold purchasing Ahmedhodzic when they did, with the Bosnian once costing the Championship side just £5.15m.
Now, the 6 foot 5 brute is worth a bumper £15m – as per Transfermarkt – with the one-time target of Woolfenden worth just £1.6m on the contrary.
Therefore, there will be no agony on United’s end that a move for Woolfenden didn’t happen, with any defensive purchases moving forward having to accommodate around main man Ahmedhodzic.
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