Ipswich Town "writing was on the wall" for player now struggling at Sheffield United | OneFootball

Chiedozie Ogbene's loan at Sheffield United could be terminated this January

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Chiedozie Ogbene has seemingly been deemed surplus to requirements at Sheffield United following his summer loan move from Ipswich Town, but the Irishman faces one key issue if he is recalled.

It has been a rotten 18 months for Chiedozie Ogbene.

Having impressed in his four-year stint with Rotherham United, the wing-back sealed a move to the Premier League with Luton Town upon the expiry of his contract with the Millers, and would make 30 top-flight appearances for the Hatters in his debut season.

However, Luton would be immediately relegated, and Ogbene was on the move once more, remaining in the Premier League with Ipswich Town, switching Kenilworth Road to Portman Road in a deal worth £8 million, where things would quickly go south.

Ogbene made just five league appearances for Ipswich before tearing his Achilles, keeping him out for the rest of the season, and he would subsequently join Sheffield United on loan this summer in a bid to regain fitness and play more regularly.

Though with the January window right around the corner, Ogbene has failed to nail down a place in the Blades squad, with reports that the Irishman is now no longer in Chris Wilder's plans at Bramall Lane, citing rumours of an early exit.

Should the 28-year-old indeed be recalled, he would not be able to play for another club this season, having made two appearances for Ipswich this season prior to his move to South Yorkshire, putting him in a difficult position.

Chiedozie Ogbene is unlikely to feature for Ipswich Town if he is recalled from his loan from Sheffield United

Football League World's Ipswich fan pundit, Adam, has shared their view on whether they believe Ogbene has any future at the club, with speculation growing that his loan spell with Sheffield United could be terminated this January.

Adam said: "I don't think there's any future at Town for Ogbene."I think he was probably on quite high Premier League wages when he came in. The injury came at an unfortunate time. I don't know if there is any chance of him featuring at Portman Road."I'm pretty sure he'd have been kept around at the start rather than us having Wes Burns registered, who wasn't going to come back until he made his first appearance off the bench at the weekend, until December. I think the writing was on the wall from then."It's a bit of a surprise that he's not got as much game time as the Blades as we hoped. I mean, the main purpose of the loan was to get him back to a decent level of fitness, probably so that we could shift him on and get some other clubs interested."I guess the only option now is a permanent transfer, because I can't see him playing at Portman Road again."

Kieran McKenna has numerous attacking options at Ipswich Town, leaving Chiedozie Ogbene out in the cold

Should Ogbene return to Ipswich this January, he may find that his minutes in Norfolk will be even tougher to come by than he is currently finding in South Yorkshire.

Head coach Kieran McKenna has rarely ever diverged from his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation, and with Ogbene's best position being at wing-back, this leaves him without a natural place.

He is more than capable of playing higher up the pitch on the right, though McKenna prefers his wide players to cut in as opposed to getting down the byline.

Following Wes Burns' recent return from injury, Ogbene has him, Sindre Walle Egeli, Jaden Philogene, Kasey McAteer, and Jack Clarke all to compete with on the flanks.

The Irishman has the benefit of offering an alternative set of skills to that of the aforementioned players, though McKenna is unlikely to stray away from his preferred options, leaving Ogbene's future up in the air.

If Ogbene's loan is terminated, he will be stuck at Ipswich for the remainder of the campaign, meaning if he is unable to force his way back in McKenna's plans, it could be a very quiet six months for the wing-back.