Sheffield United Boss Reveals Injury Blow As Midfielder Set to Return to Full Training Next Week | OneFootball

Friday evening sees Ipswich Town welcome Sheffield United to Portman Road with the two pre-season favourites for promotion now situated in the bottom quarter of the table.

Ruben Selles’ Sheffield United arrive at the bottom of the table after four straight defeats. Concerns have grown around the tactical direction under the Spaniard, with instability in midfield and a lack of creativity in attack hampering performances. The numbers back up the struggles: the Blades rank joint second-lowest for shots on target per game (2.5), while only four sides have faced more shots on average (5.25).

Ruben Selles Reveals Latest Injury News And Meeting With Sheffield United Board

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 01: Oliver Arblaster of Sheffield United is awarded a penalty after Yasser Larouci of Watford miss times his tackle during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield United FC and Watford FC at Bramall Lane on September 01, 2024 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

During the international break, Selles revealed that he held discussions with members of the board to present his ideas and tactical philosophy to them.

Selles confirmed a setback for highly rated midfielder Oliver Arblaster, whose recovery has been delayed by up to two months. On a more positive note, Tom Davies is edging closer to full fitness.

“Tom has been training with the team a couple of times, not fully. We expect him to train fully next week so he can be able to play the next game [after Ipswich Town],” Selles told SUTV.

United’s late flurry of activity in the window brought eight signings in just ten days, including Ben Mee, Mark McGuinness, and Alex Matos. “Ben is an experienced player at the level who can solve different situations in games. Mark is a well-proven centre-back for the league, and Alex is a different kind of midfielder, one who can balance the team from different positions,” Selles explained.

Despite the overhaul, the head coach is keeping expectations measured. “We need to go step by step. This squad is capable of going on Friday and trying to beat a good opponent, then we take it from there. We have a good group of players now our challenge is to become a team.”

With performances under scrutiny, Selles admitted that tactical adjustments are being considered, he said: “After the last game we deeply analysed our performances in the first four matches. We are dominant in possession but one of the least threatening in the final third. That makes chance creation more difficult. We need to be more vertical and make our attacks faster so the opponent can’t set up their defence. Whether that transformation includes a change of formation, we will see on Friday night.”

Speaking on Ipswich Town, Selles revealed he and Kieran McKenna have a good relationship having faced off against each other multiple times before. “We played against Kieran and his team on different occasions, the last one was preseason last season with Reading.

I have a good relationship with Kieran and we have been following him because the way they did things going from League 1 to Premier League was fantastic. Sometimes you don’t start the way you want to like this season, no one knows that more than us, but it’s a difficult team with good players, good staff, good environment.”

Friday’s contest already feels like a huge game for both sides, perhaps more so for the Blades because United have not yet put in a good overall display under Selles.