Sheffield United advised to take £12m with Andre Brooks future unclear | OneFootball

FLW’s Sheffield United fan pundit has advised how much the Blades should demand for Andre Brooks.

Sheffield United will be having one eye on next season as their play-off hopes continue to drift away.

A 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Wrexham means the Blades continue to sit lower mid-table in the Championship standings heading into the international break.

While the situation could have been a lot worse after Chris Wilder resurrected the side from the bottom end of the table after the first six weeks of the season under Ruben Selles, the 58-year-old will have to find a way of tuning some consistency into his playing squad, with a lack of that in both performances and results preventing them from getting themselves back into promotion contention.

It is bound to be a tough summer ahead for Sheffield United now promotion is not on the cards too, as the Yorkshire outfit are all but set to lose their parachute payments from the Premier League as they embark on a third straight season in the Championship.

Therefore, income will have to be generated in different ways, with the biggest opportunity through player sales of their top assets.

One of those could come through midfielder Andre Brooks, who, despite Sheffield United’s poor collective season, has been a shining star at Bramall Lane.

The 22-year-old ended a six-game goal drought by finding the back of the net against Wrexham, while a run of four goals in five games through January and February has put other clubs on high alert to pursue his signature.

The Jamaican received firm interest from Belgian giants Club Brugge during the January window, and while the Blades were able to fend off interest at that time, the fact he enters the last 12 months of his current deal means the Yorkshire outfit could well have to let him go in order to make any big money from a sale.

The Blades do possess the option of triggering a further 12-month extension, but a big decision has to be made as the club could make a sizeable fee due to his excellent form in the second tier.

With this in mind, FLW’s Sheffield United fan pundit has offered his thoughts on how much the club should be demanding for their star winger.

Sheffield United told to demand £12m for Andre Brooks

Speaking to Football League World, Sheffield United fan pundit Jimmy (AKA Blades Ramble) has advised the Blades to demand £12m for Andre Brooks this summer transfer window, but believes calls for bids towards £15m are “unrealistic”.

Jimmy told FLW: “I’d want at least £12 million for Andre Brooks, but I think the club could entertain anything from £10 million upwards, while a lot of fans will want £15 million plus.

“If he is going to go, which none of us want him to, but we’re obviously in a situation where we have to consider selling some players, then fans would want in excess of £12-15 million, but I’m not sure whether that’s realistic and whether there will be the demand for that price.

“If that’s the case, then do we even sell? He’s got one year left contracted and a year in the club’s favour, so that’s essentially two years left, so this is probably the maximum opportunity to get a maximum return on him as at 18 months, your value starts to dwindle.

“It’s an interesting one, but I’d be looking for about 12 personally.”

Sheffield United may have to bite the bullet with Andre Brooks sale

Andre Brooks has come into his own in a Sheffield United shirt and established himself as a standout performer most weeks, despite the club sitting so low in the table by their standards.

And the only way the club could have kept hold of Brooks was by having a late promotion charge, but with that looking increasingly unlikely, it seems they may have to just accept their fate and wave goodbye to him at the end of this season.

Brooks will be eager to test himself at the highest level, while the Blades will need to boost the coffers in order to build a team that can fight towards the right end of the table next term, so it seems like a sale is in the best interest for both parties.

The contract situation is a tough one for the Blades to work around. They should definitely make use of the 12-month contract extension they hold, but a sale should be prioritised in the summer when he is of high interest.

If Sheffield United keep him on next term, and he doesn’t have as good of a season, then the Blades would lose more money through a drop in interest, on top of the player heading into his final year, so to make as much cash as possible, a deal has to be made this summer.

While not all Sheffield United supporters would feel that £12 million is sufficient for a player of his quality, the Yorkshire outfit have to ensure they just receive a sizeable enough figure that can go towards future transfer business, otherwise the club could be feeding off scraps this coming summer and suffer another underwhelming second tier campaign.