Sheffield United ace could have major West Ham, Everton regret as Wigan Athletic transfer talk emerges | OneFootball

Michael Cooper could have landed a first Premier League career move in the summer

Sheffield United are gearing up for a busy January transfer window, and one which could help change the course of their entire season after a sluggish first half of the campaign.

It has been well-documented that the Blades' 2025/26 campaign thus far hasn't gone the way in which anybody associated with the Bramall Lane club had envisaged in pre-season, despite the controversial decision to initially replace Chris Wilder with Ruben Selles.

A rather scattergun approach to United's transfer activity throughout pre-season and the early weeks of the Championship campaign coincided with several high-profile names from the club's prior Premier League teams departing, as well as a disastrous six-game tenure under the Spaniard which left the Steel City outfit footing the table for a two-month period.

Indeed, the aforementioned Wilder hasn't held back when discussing transfer plans for the upcoming window after he was reinstated in his position as Blades boss for the third time, admitting as early as October that a document reflecting such plans had been sent the way of ownership group, COH Sports.

Football League World exclusively revealed that the loan deals which brought Ben Godfrey, Tyler Bindon and Louie Barry to S2 are set to be terminated in the coming weeks, with all three players enduring dismal loan stints after being recruited by Selles whilst being left with a feeling of transfer regret.

Such feelings may also be coming the way of United's current first-choice goalkeeper, Michael Cooper, too, with a fresh set of developments plunging his immediate future regarding gametime into serious jeopardy.

Michael Cooper may be feeling major Sheffield United transfer regret involving West Ham & Everton

Cooper was one of several new signings made by Wilder in the summer of 2024 as the 58-year-old masterminded a rebuild under a restricted budget despite receiving Parachute Payments as a result of their Premier League relegation.

Signed for just £2m from Plymouth Argyle, the 26-year-old was integral in the Green Army's promotion to the Championship in 2023 and an initial consolidation campaign despite injury issues, with his upward trajectory immediately continuing for the Blades as they made a fast start upon their EFL return.

Indeed, the Blades failed to suffer defeat in his first seven appearances - keeping six clean sheets in said time - and Cooper lasted until Boxing Day without conceding at Bramall Lane before he was beaten by Burnley midfielder, Josh Brownhill.

United would go on to end the season with the third-best defence in the Championship behind Burnley and Leeds United, with the Exeter-born man one of their standout performers, as his tally of 21 clean sheets were slightly overshadowed in the grand scheme of things by the Clarets' record-breaking shot-stopper, James Trafford.

After seeing a first stint in the Premier League slip away in dramatic fashion against Sunderland at Wembley Stadium, Cooper became the subject of intense transfer interest in the summer, with West Ham United and Everton reportedly interested in his services whilst the Blades demanded a minimum sum of £15m.

As previously mentioned, it was a disastrous start to the season for Cooper on an individual level and the Blades' squad as a whole, with it taking seven games for their first victory and a maiden clean sheet to be recorded.

Since then, the goalkeeper's form has somewhat picked up, particularly of late as United have enjoyed a mini-revival. However, with links to Wigan Athletic's prized asset, Sam Tickle, now coming to the fore, Cooper may be left cursing his luck as a top-flight move failed to surface in the summer.

It's unlikely that Cooper would've been first-choice at Everton anyway, given Jordan Pickford's presence in-between the sticks at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, but there was a vacancy to be filled at West Ham, which was taken by Leicester City's Mads Hermansen, but he's had a poor start to life at the London Stadium, which has led to him being benched after four Premier League appearances - would Cooper have been a better fit?

Tickle is also one of England's most highly-rated goalkeepers in his own right, having performed to an exceptionally high standard for the Latics in League One, meaning a step-up in class is the natural next step for the 23-year-old.

Despite Wigan's rather inconsistent beginning to the campaign, the Warrington native's numbers thus far remain fairly respectable, and there are understandable fears amongst those at the Brick Community Stadium that his time in the third tier may be coming to a swift end.

It must be said, though, that there are two-and-a-half years currently left on his Wigan contract, having signed a four-year contract extension last summer after gaining further recognition for his performances as an England youth international.

As such, the chance of signing a player with such strong current ability and potential, backed up by previous interest from Premier League leaders Arsenal, would normally excite those of a Blades persuasion.

However, it isn't necessarily a position which is the club's greatest priority at this moment in time, given the fact Cooper has already kept over 30 clean sheets in the division in less than 90 appearances, whilst he also remains highly-rated, albeit slightly older than his potential colleague.