Sheffield United have wasted big talent - Aston Villa transfer demand confirms it | OneFootball

Louie Barry's loan spell at Sheffield United was uneventful, and it may be over soon

Louie Barry is set to be recalled from his loan spell at Sheffield United in January, marking the end of a rather unproductive few months in the 22-year-old's career.

The exciting wideman was gearing up for a big year in 2025/26 after his growth was stunted somewhat during the first few months of the calendar year, having lit up League One during the start of last season with Stockport County.

15 goals in 23 third-tier games were still enough for Barry to place eighth in the scoring ranks and be nominated for Young Player of the Season come May, despite being recalled from Aston Villa and put into the Championship with Hull City in January.

However, just four games into his time at the MKM Stadium, the 22-year-old was on the shelf for the rest of the season due to a knee injury.

This campaign was set to be a breakout one for Barry, especially since he was set to be playing for a side many expected to be playing attractive football and competing at the top of the division in Sheffield United.

Unfortunately, there have been plenty of decisions that Blades fans feel were mistakes this season, and loaning the Villa wideman was one of them.

However, the 22-year-old has reported interest from several play-off chasing Championship sides for a loan move during the second half of the campaign, which shows he still has plenty of talent. So, perhaps Sheffield United should have given him more of an opportunity post-Selles.

Louie Barry's disappointing few months at Sheffield United

Barry was one of Ruben Selles' first transfers after arriving at Bramall Lane in the summer, and given how hard he worked to bring him to Hull last January, it made sense.After tearing apart League One with Stockport, Selles' Tigers had beaten out interest from the likes of Leeds United and Middlesbrough to bring him in.This summer, interest wouldn't have been as high, as the 22-year-old's time at Hull ended after just four games due to a knee injury. But, after showing glimpses of quality under the Spaniard at his former club, there was some excitement to see what he could do with the Blades.Ultimately, Selles' six-game stint at Sheffield United was a disaster, losing all six, including the opening five Championship outings, of which Barry started all of them.The wideman wasn't making an impact, but arguably, none of the Sheffield United players were under Selles. However, the return of Chris Wilder for a third stint marked the beginning of the end for Barry at Bramall Lane.A lot of the signings Selles brought in have barely featured under Wilder. The likes of Nils Zatterstrom, Ben Godfrey and Tyler Bindon haven't played since the popular manager came back, and while Barry has been given some time on the field, it's been limited.The 22-year-old has started just once under Wilder, and was taken off early in the second half in said start against Watford. Otherwise, it's been brief substitute appearances up until the end of October, where he sustained another knee injury, which has kept him out for the last month.The Blades boss has preferred Callum O'Hare in the left-sided attacking midfield role since he came back, and with Gustavo Hamer returning from injury recently, too, who played predominantly off the left under Wilder last season, there doesn't seem to be much scope for Barry to get back into the side once he returns from his knee issue.The BBC report states that it is "unlikely" that he'll play during December, and thus it makes sense for the ties to be cut once the January transfer window opens. Earlier this month, Football League World exclusively revealed the likelihood of Barry's loan deal being cut short following the turn of the year, something which now represents an inevitability at Bramall Lane.

Rival Championship sides linked with Louie Barry shows he has quality - Sheffield United have possibly overlooked it

There's no doubting that Sheffield United under Ruben Selles was a poor team destined for relegation, and given that Barry started all the Championship games under the Spaniard, it can be easy to label him as a sub-par wideman.However, the likes of Stoke City, Hull City and Derby County, three sides who have promotion aspirations following a strong opening half to the campaign, are looking at the 22-year-old to give them a boost towards finishing in the top six, or even the top two in Stoke's case.Barry has struggled massively in 2025, playing just 13 times across both loan spells in East and South Yorkshire, and will be champing at the bit to get back playing regularly as he attempts to showcase to the Championship what he was doing during his time at Stockport.That hunger could be exactly what a team needs to help push them towards the top six, and come the end of the campaign, people could be talking about the 2025/26 term as one which started slowly for the 22-year-old before exploding to life in a new setting.Chris Wilder is one of the better managers in the second tier, and is one of the better judges of players at the level, but perhaps Barry could be someone he got wrong? Especially if he does go and excel at a side in a better position than the Blades are currently.