Chris Wilder delivers exciting Sheffield United transfer update | OneFootball

The Blades boss expects there to be player movement in the coming days

Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder is convinced that there'll be player movement at Bramall Lane in the next week.

The Sheffield Star has reported that the Blades boss believes now that the FA Cup third-round weekend is behind us, business will "accelerate," and players will be joining and departing the club ahead of their visit to Charlton Athletic on Saturday.

It's been one in, one extended and four out thus far for Sheffield United this January. Alongside the extension of Patrick Bamford's contract until the end of next season, Wolves' Ki-Jana Hoever joined on loan.

On the flip side, Sam Curtis and Louie Marsh have both been loaned out until the end of the campaign, and Louie Barry and Ben Godfrey were sent back to their respective clubs from their loan spells at Bramall Lane.

There's still plenty of room to operate, though, with several youngsters and fringe players at the club tipped to leave on loan before February 2nd's deadline, and that would ultimately free up space for extra additions to be made.

Chris Wilder is adamant that there'll be signings and departures at Sheffield United this week

Speaking to the Sheffield Star following the Blades' defeat in the FA Cup third round against Mansfield Town on Sunday, Chris Wilder was explicit in his plans to move some players on and bring new ones in over the coming week - "Yeah, they need to. They need to."

"It's been quite difficult with the numbers we have been dealing with, and I've told Steve [Bettis, Sheffield United's chief executive] that as well. So we need to work hard. Maybe some players that people are fancying, and maybe even players that have played [vs Mansfield], have not helped their cause if they want to go and play regular football.

"But certainly some of the younger players need to go out and play because the squad, as we've always known since I've walked through the door, is too big and too bloated."

Marsh and Curtis are prime examples of young players who need game time. Ryan One, who is linked with Rotherham United, is another young talent who is likely to leave this month.

Additionally, Mihail Polendakov, Christian Nwachukwu, and Ehije Ukaki, who all joined the club in the past year, thanks to the AI-identified signing policy adopted by the Blades, may also depart, having hardly gotten a chance to play in the side under Wilder.

"I do think things will accelerate. I've said before that I think teams would play some players who maybe don't get games usually, and that might free them up. And I'm sure that will happen. We have to keep working to build, but no doubt we'll be okay at Charlton next week."

Sheffield United will have a clear path to the finish line once the January transfer window closes

Chris Wilder stressed the importance of "togetherness and tightness" in a squad, which can't be obtained with a large side.

Ultimately, that indicates that letting go of some of the dead wood in the first team squad this January is almost as, if not more, important than bringing in recruits, as the Sheffield United boss aims to trim the squad down ahead of a significant second half of the season.

With Chris Wilder's side out of the FA Cup, there are no extra distractions, which means that Sheffield United can focus on the Championship task at hand, and they can even afford to have an even smaller squad to breed consistency into starting lineups and gain momentum towards the finish line.

For many Blades fans, they can't wait for business to be done and for the January transfer window to close, as that means that the club can get their heads down and focus on climbing up the second-tier table.

And given that no side has won more points over the last ten games than the Bramall Lane outfit, despite Chris Wilder's thoughts about the squad, it'll be very dangerous to see what Sheffield United can do if the Blades' chief gets his way in the coming weeks.