Cardiff City should eye '£5-6m' Sheffield United transfer windfall for star 'Chris Wilder will love' | OneFootball

Sheffield United have eyed a move for Cardiff City star Cian Ashford.

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 have eyed a move for Cardiff City's Cian Ashford, as Chris Wilder looks to strengthen his side's frontline in the January transfer window.

The Blades' increasingly unlikely play-off challenge took another turn for the worse when they were beaten 1-0 at Southampton in Wednesday's Championship clash.

Having suffered three consecutive defeats across all competitions, Wilder's men may struggle to turn their fortunes around this Saturday when they face automatic promotion contenders Ipswich Town.

Meanwhile, Sheffield United have strengthened their squad with the loan addition of defender Ki-Jana Hoever from Wolves, whereas striker Louie Marsh was offloaded to Falkirk.

Cardiff, meanwhile, are likely to rejoin the Blades in the Championship next term, with the Bluebirds continuing to enjoy a healthy lead at the top of the League One table following their 2-1 statement victory at promotion rivals Bradford City on the weekend.

Sheffield United told they will have to pay £6m for Cardiff City star Cian Ashford

Sheffield United are keen on Cardiff winger Ashford as Wilder plots to move his side back towards the top half of the Championship table, with the Wales under-21 international having also been linked with a switch to the Steel City last summer when Ruben Selles was briefly in charge.

Amid the Blades' interest in Ashford, Football League World asked our Bluebirds fan pundit, Matt Hall, what sort of price tag he would put on the 21-year-old.

Hall told FLW: "I'm aware of the interest in Ashford from Sheffield United. It's been ongoing for a while, which leads you to think that there is something to it.

"It's probably a signing that fits them quite well in terms of quite a hard-working player, quite an honest player, someone who will press really well. Chris Wilder, especially, will love that.

"He wins the ball back quite a lot. As far as I'm aware, they don't really have a right-winger that stands out for them. Obviously, he's quite a versatile player, can play across the pitch.

"If I was to say (out of) the pool of young players we've got at the moment, he'd probably be quite high up on the list of players I'd be comfortable with letting go.

"I think that he's someone that is, for us anyway, replaceable. I don't think he's someone that is irreplaceable in the lineup, so to speak. I think you look at someone like Rubin Colwill, Dylan Lawlor, Ronan Kpakio. You'd be gutted to lose a lot of those players, even to an extent, Joel Colwill, with what they offer.

"I do think Cian has got a bit of a lower ceiling than quite a lot of those players. But, obviously, at the same time, he is only 21. Generally, I think he has the potential to put up good numbers, if not necessarily being the most dazzling player to watch on the eye.

"He offers a great deal, and he's also someone that Brian Barry-Murphy trusts a lot. I think if you were going into the Championship next season, he'd be quite handy, and there's games where he might be under the cosh a little bit.

"His work rate is second to none. He's someone that you can really rely on in those moments to help your full-back out. With all of that in mind, the price tag I'd be looking at is probably the £5-6million region.

"I don't think he's really at the level output-wise to be throwing out your £10m, really. I don't think he's at that level. That might be something that may differ among the fanbase, but for me, you'd be holding out for £5-6m. It's a good amount to get. It's the sort of amount that we could use, then, to reinvest pretty wisely into either one or two really top players."

Cardiff could be wise to cash in on Cian Ashford amid Sheffield United interest

Cardiff will largely want to keep their squad together as they continue to push for an immediate return to the Championship, following last season's relegation to League One.

The third-tier leaders made a significant step towards the title by beating fellow automatic promotion chasers Bradford City, and will be looking to extend their lead when they host Stockport County this Saturday.

However, despite his strong work ethic, Ashford has notched just three goals and two assists in League One this term, while he also failed to be clinical in the Championship last season after making a first-team breakthrough under Omer Riza. Cardiff have a glut of hugely-promising young talents in the likes of Kpakio, Lawlor and the Colwill brothers, meaning Ashford could be extendable.

Therefore, if Sheffield United make a reasonable bid for the winger's services, the Welsh capital outfit could be keen to cash in on their man.