How Sheffield United feel about potential Gus Hamer transfer exit in January | OneFootball

Gustavo Hamer has had a surprisingly indifferent 2025-26 so far for Sheffield United, but the Blades appear determined to keep hold of the midfielder.

Sheffield United are keen to keep hold of their star midfielder Gustavo Hamer in the January transfer window, even though to do so might be a high-stakes gamble.

A 2-0 defeat at West Bromwich Albion punctured some of the momentum that had been starting to build for the Blades following their dismal start to the 2025-26 season, but the club seem keen to keep one of their most valuable assets at the club regardless.

United remain in 19th place in the Championship table, and with the squad having been intensively rebuilt during the summer, it's likely that they will have a very busy month in the January transfer window as they seek to get their season back on track.

One player whose name has been linked to transfer speculation for some time has been that of midfielder Gustavo Hamer, who signed for the club from Coventry City in 2023.

Hamer was subject to intense transfer speculation all summer but ended up staying at Bramall Lane, and fresh reports now indicate that the club will not want to let him go in January, either.

Sheffield United are expecting Gustavo Hamer transfer interest in the January window

FourFourTwo reported at the end of August that there were conditions under which Hamer could be allowed to leave Bramall Lane, but these didn't appeal to the clubs that were looking to acquire his services during the summer.

They reported that Sheffield United could have been open to an agreement that would have included an obligation to buy at the end of an initial loan deal, but that the midfield maestro wasn't begging for a move away from Bramall Lane.

Hamer had been subject to interest from Leeds United and PSV Eindhoven during the summer, and although this speculation continued all the way to transfer deadline day itself, no agreement was reached for him to depart Sheffield United.

And Football Insider have now confirmed that the club's stance over Hamer has shifted since then.

It is claimed that the South Yorkshire outfit are keen to keep Hamer at all costs as they look to keep moving up the Championship table from the relegation battle they found themselves in in recent times, but they will have to fend off expected interest at the start of 2026 for his services.

Keeping Gus Hamer "at all costs" could be a high-stakes gamble for Sheffield United

Making a decision to keep Gus Hamer at Bramall Lane wouldn't have been a considered a controversial outlook at the start of the season. He was, after all, named as the Championship Player of the Year for 2024-25, despite the Blades not winning promotion back to the Premier League.

But this season has been an uncharacteristically low-key one for Hamer. A hamstring injury kept him out of the first team for three weeks in October, and although he's started ten times for them this season, his player ratings have been patchier than in previous seasons.

But according to Football Insider's report, Chris Wilder still sees Hamer as "a player who could alter the course of their campaign in the second half of the season" and this has determined the club's policy towards the player for this season.

This isn't the only complication, either. Hamer's contract is due to expire in the summer of 2027, so by next summer any value he has in the transfer market will start to plummet as he enters its final year. Sheffield United have already been reported to have contacted his representatives to get that contract extended, but there is no indication that this has been agreed yet.

The gamble will come, should Hamer not agree terms over a new contract. This will set a different clock ticking and could change the club's stance again. A failure to sign a new contract would be a clear indicator that Hamer wants Premier League football sooner rather than later and that he doesn't believe that this can be delivered at Bramall Lane.

If that is the case (and given that it is now unlikely that Sheffield United will be challenging for a promotion place this season, with an eleven-point gap to make up and only just over half a season to achieve this), it would make more sense for the Blades to cash out and sell him on.

But if that contract extension can be agreed, it could be an indication that the player wants to stay at Bramall Lane while bumping any particular transfer fee up, and this combination would seem to make it very unlikely that Hamer would be going anywhere in the new year.

Chris Wilder clearly believes in Gustavo Hamer, and with interest in him from elsewhere undiminished, one of the biggest questions of the January transfer window may turn out to be whether the player himself fancies his chances more with Sheffield United than he might anywhere else.