Leroy Fer to Sheffield United: Is it a good potential move? Would he start? What does he offer? | OneFootball

Sheffield United will be hoping to head into the upcoming international break on a positive note by securing a victory in their showdown with Cardiff City tomorrow.

The Championship season is set to pause for the start of the World Cup after this round of fixtures before resuming in December.

Ahead of the club’s clash with the Bluebirds, the Blades have been linked with a move for Leroy Fer.

According to a Patreon report from Alan Nixon, United are believed to be interested in the midfielder who currently plays for Turkish outfit Alanyaspor.

Here, we have decided to take a look at whether this would be a good potential move by the Blades while also assessing Fer’s chances of starting for the club…

Is it a good potential move?

When you consider that Fer has previously played in the Championship for Swansea City, Norwich City and Queens Park Rangers, it will not take him too long to readjust to life in this division and thus this could prove to be a good potential move by the club.

Providing that he is able to adapt to the system (predominantly a 3-5-2 formation) that Paul Heckingbottom currently deploys at Bramall Lane, Fer could play an influential role in the club’s push for promotion.

Would he start?

Fer is being utilised in the heart of midfield by Alanyaspor and thus will compete for a place in the Blades’ side with the likes of Oliver Norwood, John Fleck and Sander Berge who is currently on the road to recovery from injury.

The Dutchman may have to initially settle for a place on the bench as this aforementioned trio have all featured regularly for the Blades in the first half of the season.

Norwood has yet to miss a league game during the current term while Fleck has made 12 appearances in all competitions.

As for Berge, the Norwegian has provided six direct goal contributions in the Championship in the 2022/23 campaign.

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What does he offer?

Fer is extremely comfortable while in possession of the ball as he has registered an impressive pass success rate of 89.9% in the Super Lig this season.

The 32-year-old is also capable of providing some defensive cover as he has made 1.9 tackles and 1.2 clearances per game for Alanyaspor during the current campaign (as per WhoScored).

Although it is fair to say that Fer has not been prolific in front of goal during his career, he has occasionally provided an attacking threat as he has managed to find the back of the net on 65 occasions in 490 senior club appearances.