"A raw Harry Maguire" - Sheffield United urged to secure Leicester City transfer | OneFootball

FLW's Sheffield United fan pundit has urged the Blades to sign Harry Souttar permanently from Leicester City.

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…

Sheffield United signed Harry Souttar this summer from Leicester City on loan, and the Australian international has already settled into life well at Bramall Lane.

The Blades were able to bring in a host of new faces over the summer, despite looking like that may not have been a possibility given the club's ongoing takeover situation. A lot of work is still to be done over the course of the season if they want to feel like real contenders for an immediate return to the Premier League, but they are among the favourites for promotion.

Souttar was bought by Leicester for £15 million in January 2023 from Stoke City. The giant central defender has needed a move away the Foxes for a while now, though. He often represents his country during international breaks, but that has been the majority of the first-team football he received last season.

Souttar found himself in virtual exile in the Foxes' recent title-winning campaign under Maresca, who handed him just four league outings, as Wout Faes and Jannik Vestergaard proved to be all but indispensable which left Souttar well down the pecking order of central defenders.

He also wasn't a part of new boss Steve Cooper's plans for the upcoming Premier League campaign, and he has headed to South Yorkshire for a temporary spell away from Leicester. The Blades and his former side Stoke City were reported to be interested in taking him on loan, according to The Telegraph's John Percy, but it was Sheffield United who won the race for his services.

Harry Souttar's start to life at Sheffield United

In Souttar, United have added Championship experience and quality to the centre of their backline, which was an area that really needed addressing after last season, where they broke the record for most goals conceded in a Premier League campaign.

Signed on a season-long loan deal at the start of August, Souttar is already looking like an excellent piece of business. He has even captained the side during the win over Wrexham in the EFL Cup, but settled in well as one of the Blades' key defenders already. And, speaking to FLW's Sheffield United fan pundit Jimmy, he is keen to bring the defender in permanently if his side are promoted this term.

He said: "Harry Souttar has been incredible, to be honest.

"He reminds me very much of a raw Harry Maguire. When we were in League One and Maguire was first coming through, Souttar has a lot of similar qualities.

"He's a big lad, not very fast, and can't turn very quickly. But his positioning makes up for it and he's really strong in the air, as you would expect for an absolute giant.

"He's so far been a really solid loan for us and I would definitely be keen on us exploring a permanent deal for him.

"I don't think we will do that in January, because I don't think the funds will be there and you'll be looking at around £10 million at least.

"They signed him for around £15 million, but if we are promoted, particularly if Leicester are relegated as well, then I'd certainly be looking at making that permanent in the summer."

Harry Souttar's impact at Sheffield United

Souttar has had a tough time of late at the King Power Stadium and barely featured for the Foxes as they won the Championship title last season, but the 25-year-old Australian has shown in the past that he can be an excellent player at Championship level.

It's fair to say that Souttar's time at Leicester City was a disappointment, and he played just 16 times in a year-and-a-half in the East Midlands. However, Sheffield United should take heart from the fact that Souttar performed so well at Championship level with Stoke previously at this level, and he has shown his class already.

However, some were a little concerned that Souttar is a right-sided central defender and what that may mean for Anel Ahmedhodzic in that sense. It made it a head-scratcher for Chris Wilder and the fans alike, as a player of the quality of the Leicester loanee will be pushing to start.

It meant Souttar or Ahmedhodzic would be required to switch to the left if they are paired together, which could see the Blades lose something in either of them, but particularly in Ahmedhodzic. There are, of course, a number of high-quality right-sided centre-backs in the Championship, but he is arguably the best of them all.

However, the switch to the left to accommodate Souttar so far has worked. Operating alongside Ahmedhodzic in the club's recent victories, the towering duo could be set to form one of the best and most imposing centre-back partnerships in the second tier with Sheffield United.