Sheffield United confirm surprise player exit - many Blades fans left baffled | OneFootball

Sheffield United have announced their retained list following the end of the season - and a surprise name has emerged on it

Sheffield United are readying themselves for what could be a busy summer transfer window ahead.

The Blades endured an underwhelming 2025-26 Championship campaign, finishing 13th in the table after a real early season struggle.

Chris Wilder’s side reached the play-off final just 12 months ago, but were 13 points short of retaining their place inside the top six.

The South Yorkshire outfit were never really even in contention for promotion this year, with the club having to climb out of the relegation zone in the early stages of the term.

Wilder will be hoping for a stronger start to next season, with his sights set on returning his boyhood club to the Premier League.

The transfer market offers Sheffield United the chance to improve their first team squad before the new campaign gets underway, but one player has been announced as a surprise departee.

Sheffield United confirm surprising contract U-turn for Jairo Riedewald

Sheffield United have confirmed that Jairo Riedewald’s time at the club is over after announcing their retained list for the summer.

The midfielder joined the Championship side in October as a free agent after his exit from Dutch side Royal Antwerp.

However, the club have announced that he will not have his contract renewed despite previous reports that his contract option would be triggered, and he would be interested in a longer-term deal to stay at Bramall Lane.

The 29-year-old proved a popular figure under Wilder, and he featured 25 times in the Championship, contributing three goals.

In a more expected development, Sheffield United have also confirmed that Tom Davies, Danny Ings and Ben Mee have left Bramall Lane. Meanwhile, an option has been triggered in Adam Davies’ contract to keep him with the club for a further 12 months.

Supporters have expressed their frustration with the news that Riedewald has played his last game for the Blades, with some suggesting that his wages could have proved an issue, particularly due to the new Championship financial regulations that clubs voted for last week.

Riedewald has been praised for the impact he had on turning around the team’s fortunes, alongside November signing Patrick Bamford, with another bemused reaction from a United supporter over his exit.

The ex-Crystal Palace midfielder will be missed by fans, who claimed that he was one of the few players in Wilder’s squad capable of controlling a game.

Meanwhile, one Sheffield United supporter has theorised that this move could open the door for Kalvin Phillips to return to the club after spending the second half of the campaign on loan from Manchester City.

However, no official agreement has been reached regarding the future of Phillips, who is set to return to the Etihad Stadium for the summer, and it may once again need Man City to help the Blades out with a heavily-incentivised loan deal.

Jairo Riedewald departure is a blow for Sheffield United

Riedewald proved a shrewd signing for Sheffield United, and he was a crucial part of turning things around under Wilder after their poor start, so his departure comes as a real blow to the squad.

Perhaps the new financial rules have had an impact on this decision, although that has not yet been confirmed, which would be an unfortaunte bit of timing for the Yorkshire outfit, particularly as they will no longer receive parachute payments in the next campaign.

The club voted last week to implement a Squad Cost Ratio (SCR) framework for next season that will determine the amount of money that they can legally spend.