Sheffield United

Sheffield United CEO, Stephen Bettis, spent an hour with BBC Radio Sheffield for the Blades Heaven podcast, talking about the club, improvements on the pitch, selling key players and more. Here are some of his answers from a fascinating discussion.

Question: How do you feel about Sheffield United's season so far?

"Obviously the results on the pitch are not what we would like at the moment and everyone agrees with that, I think we're all on the same page. But, maybe foolishly, I'm still really positive about what's going on at the football club. There's a lot of really good stuff going on. There's a lot of progress still being made off the pitch and recent announcements such as a new training pitch and the hotel being done, etc.

"All of this stuff is putting the club in a really good position going forward and giving it the right foundation to build on. So for me, even though we're not where we want to be on the pitch, and we are where we are in the league, I think there's a hell of a lot of positive things still going on around the football club."

Question: How will the the recruitment networks and system be improved and will we sell our best players again?

"I've had this thrown at me before, that we sold our two best players, Sander [Berge] and Iliman [Ndiaye] and there's also statements that we sold them right near the end of the window as well. Let's take Sander. He has one year left on his contract.

"A lot of supporters gave him a hell of a lot of stick when he was here and weren't happy with him and how he played. And then we sold him and he was our best player so it's like was he our best player or not? That's the first question. He has one year left on his contract, he made it clear to me and his agent made it clear to me that he had no desire to extend his contract with us. Sander is a really nice kid and there was no malice in it or anything of that nature but he just wanted a different challenge.

"We're then stuck with a situation where we've got a player worth a considerable sum of money that we know is not going to be here in a year's time and do we let him leave on a free or do we decide to sell him? Very early in the window, Burnley came to us and made an offer for Sander, which, I've seen reports that our manager at the time Hecky [Paul Heckingbottom] didn't know we'd sold him and that sort of thing. None of that is true. We turned down Burnley's early offer and told them what we value the player at. They made about five or six early offers in the window all of which were refused because they never met our valuation and we just moved on and forgot about it. Then they came near the end of the window and said they would pay the price and we basically agreed to sell him at that point."

Listen to the full episode of Blades Heaven on BBC Sounds

As we approach the business end, we want to know the most irritating thing at your club this season.

Has it been a player failing to deliver, injury woes, inconsistent form... or something else?

Let us know your biggest gripe here

Ben Meakin
Fan writer

The 6-0 shellacking by Arsenal seemed to stir Sheffield United’s previously dormant hierarchy into some kind of action, with the Blades' head of recruitment, Paul Mitchell, leaving his job with immediate effect after eight years in the post.

Recent transfer business has been poor, and this is undoubtedly a good moment for a refresh in how the club conducts its recruitment.

At the same time, though, Mitchell should leave with his head held high.

Chris Wilder deserves every plaudit he has received for dragging the team out of League One and into the Premier League, on that magical run between 2016 and 2020, but Mitchell has been there with him every step of the way.

For every Mason Holgate or Luke Freeman, there are examples of players who - under Mitchell's watch and no doubt recommendation - formed the bedrock of probably the best Blades team of my lifetime.

Players like Jack O'Connell, Mark Duffy, Enda Stevens and John Fleck trip off the tongue as modern United greats, delivering hundreds of outstanding performances in red and white. They were assembled for virtually nothing.

When the club did spend money in the Championship – on the likes of John Egan, George Baldock and Oliver Norwood – we got incredible value for that outlay. That trio has been at the heart of three promotions, two of which were back up to the top flight.

Counter-intuitively, Mitchell's recruitment has fallen down when we have actually had big money (for us) to spend.

Rhian Brewster, Oli McBurnie, Callum Robinson, Freeman, and plenty of our other Premier League signings, have not come close to living up to the fees spent on them. Although the jury is still out on many of this season's crop of arrivals.

However, in the lower leagues, Mitchell's knowledge and eye for an unpolished diamond was unparalleled.

If United hope to establish themselves in the Premier League in the next few years, this is a good time for a refresh and hopefully a move towards a broader, more modern scouting network.

But Mitchell deserves every Blades fan's respect for moving the club from the League One doldrums to a stage where cemeting ourselves in the top flight is a realistic aim for the club rather than sheer fantasy.

Ben Meakin can be found on BladesPod, external

Nottingham Forest have slipped into the relegation zone after being deducted four points for breaching the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules, BBC Sport understands.

The deduction leaves, which leaves Nuno Espirito Santo's side on 21 points, lifts Luton Town out of the drop zone by one point.

Burnley remain in 19th and are four points behind Forest with 10 games remaining, while Sheffield United are seven.

Everton, who were previously deducted six points, are now three points clear of Forest but the Toffees could still be deducted further points for a second breach.

Brentford remain in 15th on 26 points.

Read the full story over here

Rob Staton
BBC Radio Sheffield reporter

Sheffield United go early into the international break staring the future in the face. A big rebuild is coming in the summer.

Key players who have done so much for the club are likely to depart and it will probably be a new-look team.

Manager Chris Wilder is going to meet the owner during this period and talks over the future on the pitch will take place. Changes are already happening behind the scenes, with the recent announcement of a new training ground for the first team and the departure of Paul Mitchell, the long-standing head of recruitment.

However, there's a feeling now that if you could fast forward to the summer it would be better for everyone. This hasn't been the season United hoped for.

They were arguably on a hiding to nothing after selling their best two players so close to the start of the season. I'm not even sure it's right to point the finger at the board for that, given the contract status of Sander Berge and Iliman Ndiaye.

A lot of things conspired to work against United putting up much of a fight.

Yet look at Burnley - no better off after spending millions. Even Luton Town, who rightly get a lot of credit for their spirited effort in the Premier League, are likely to be playing the Blades in the Championship next season.

It speaks to how difficult making the step up is. That's why getting the rebuild right is so critical.

United need to take time to build a team that can compete to return to the top flight - and then be in a position to stay there. That is likely to take major infrastructure work behind the scenes, such as the training ground and youth development, rather than just splurging millions on players and wages.

Image source, Getty Images

Sheffield-born Ollie Arblaster says he was "keen to commit" his future to Sheffield United after being recalled from loan club Port Vale.

The 19-year-old made his first Premier League start at Vitality Stadium, following a substitute appearance against Arsenal, after coming through the ranks as a Blades ballboy and academy graduate.

Arblaster spoke to BBC Radio Sheffield about his "mad week" after the draw against the Cherries: "Getting told I was starting, just being out there and hearing the fans chanting my name... it's obviously what I've dreamed about.

"Hopefully it's the first of many. Everyone knows I support Sheffield United but I'm a player here, and I want to play for Sheffield United - that's my commitment now."

In February, Arblaster signed a new contract that will keep him at Bramall Lane until 2028. Now he wants to "repay" manager Chris Wilder for giving him the opportunity to play in the Premier League.

"He's backed me all the way," said Arblaster. "In training, he's been helping me out. He just said to play how I trained and I tried playing with freedom. It's a big boost when the manager is backing you and you want to repay him and the fans as well.

"Obviously to commit my future was something I've been keen to get done. It's sorted and I'm just glad I'll be playing for Sheffield United. No matter what league it's in, I'll give it my all and I can't wait for many games to come."

Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds

According to Opta's 'Supercomputer', Sheffield United are likely to be relegated this season with a 20th-place finish on 22 points (22.22 to be precise!).

We asked you for your thoughts on this prediction and here are some of your responses:

Rick: It's been a tough season for us and although we've gained a few points away from home, our home form is awful. I think that we're down but hoping for a miracle!

Neil: Yes, we were relegated before the season even started with the lack of investment. The only thing we can look forward to is not finishing bottom.

Dave: Not a cat in hell's chance of us getting 20 points, never mind 22. Going to be a massive summer clearout. Hopefully the owner will spend a bit next season or we could plummet into League One.

Peter: Really not sure we need a 'supercomputer' running multiple simulations to tell us the Blades will be relegated.

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Wales boss Rob Page has named a 28-man squad for the upcoming semi-final and possible play-off final.

Wales face Finland at Cardiff City Stadium on Thursday, 21 March, with a potential final against Poland or Estonia to follow five days later, also in Cardiff, for a place at this summer's European Championship.

Pat Nevin
Former Chelsea and Everton winger

Image source, Reuters

Watching Everton, Luton Town and Sheffield United on Saturday underlined just how competitive the Premier League is. Nobody has given up down at the bottom and no three points can ever be taken for granted.

Luton battled to the very death against Crystal Palace to win a point in the 96th minute. Everton had more possession, chances and endeavour than Manchester United at Old Trafford and although there is a distinct lack of quality in front of goal, the spirit is there in bucketfuls.

Sheffield United might have buckled after the embarrassing 6-0 home hammering by Arsenal, but no, they were back down at Bournemouth going 2-0 up before succumbing to a late equaliser.

All the bottom sides have weaknesses, most obviously up front with few natural goalscorers, though Luton's Elijah Adebayo has scored nine in the league. His return is arguably as impressive as Erling Haaland's 18 to date, simply because the Norwegian gets so many more chances.

The teams at the bottom are all fighting, and each is dangerous. They keep the entire division honest, and they deserve applause for that alone. Who knows, one of them might even decide the title in the end.

As if to underline the above, Burnley, who are very likely to be in the Championship next season, were asking West Ham the toughest of questions after going 2-0 up in east London on Sunday. Eventually, David Moyes got the message across that there are no easy games and they fought back impressively in another cracking game.

Pat Nevin was writing for the BBC Football Extra newsletter

Ben Meakin
Fan writer

A common refrain among Sheffield United fans this season has concerned the legacy of our recent years in the Premier League.

The Blades have spent three of the past five seasons receiving the riches of the top flight - with parachute payments coming during the seasons in the second tier. But what have we got to show for it?

A team worse than the one that got promoted. A miniscule budget relative to the level we're trying to compete at. And half the first-team squad out of contract this summer.

As of last week, as it announced that they had purchased land for a new training centre, the club finally has something it can point towards and say: "This wouldn’t have been possible without those years in the Premier League."

It's still early days development-wise, but this marks the end of a three-year search for a suitable location and should see the Blades move to more modern facilities over the next few years.

Crucially for a club that has had a lot of success in finding and developing youth players, this move also strengthens United's intentions to upgrade the academy to category one status.

This season has been humiliating on a weekly basis, even if we did enjoy 24 hours off the bottom of the table this weekend.

Having something like a new, modern training centre does make the bitter pill of this campaign slightly easier to swallow.

Ben Meakin can be found on BladesPod, external

As the Premier League heads into the business end of the season, statisticians Opta have been putting the remaining fixtures through their 'supercomputer' to predict who will finish where in the table at the end of the campaign.

Sheffield United, who currently sit bottom of the table on 14 points, are among a number of teams fighting to keep their place in the Premier League.

They next face Fulham on March 30, before a tough run of games against Liverpool, Chelsea and Brentford.

According to Opta, the Blades are likely to be relegated this season with a 20th place finish on 22.22 points.

But what do you think Sheffield United fans? Do you agree with the prediction or have you got faith Chris Wilder and the team can beat the 'supercomputer' and fight the relegation threat?

Have your say here

We asked for your thoughts on Saturday's game between Bournemouth and Sheffield United.

Here are some of your responses:

Bournemouth fans

Charl: When will Iraola realise we need a leader on the pitch to rally the players who seem to have forgotten the plan. No-one seemed to know what they were supposed to be doing. Schoolboy football, afraid to shoot and hopeless when they did. Play Scott from the start, he's quality.

Carl: Poor performance by Cherries, at least until the third. Solanke obviously is not match fit, mentally and physically. Only a few times he touched the ball and one time, he missed the penalty. He should not have been risked. Enes Unal has shown his quality and got his goal. Unal and Sinisterra deserve to be starting.

Caxtonia: I see Wolves are up to eighth in the Premier League. I wonder where the Cherries would be if Gary O'Neil had not been pushed out? What excuse will be forthcoming this week from the manager who was appointed in Gary's place?

Penguin: Typical Bournemouth - always a mistake and a bit of chaos, but also always willing to put a lot of effort into the game.

Sheff Utd fans

Green: A much better performance than against Arsenal. Really disappointed to concede the two goals like we did though. When we took McBurnie off, the ball was just coming straight back because there was no-one to hold it up.

David: Yet again, failure to defend set-piece situations cost us. We should have gone away with all the points. Still, a point is better than nothing. Off the bottom, but for how long?

James: Another pitiful collapse. Not as bad as some recently, but nothing here to give any sign of hope.

David: No-one mentions the injuries we have had this season. Half the team that started weren't fit enough to last 90 minutes, hence the drop in standards for the last 20 mins after enforced subs.

BBC Sport's chief football writer Phil McNulty has been answering your questions on Monday.

Martin in Derby: Only three Premier League clubs have panic sacked their managers this season: Sheffield United, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace. So far, none are better off, arguably worse off in Forest's case. What do you think of this strategy versus the boards who hold their nerve - a la Burnley, Luton, Everton, Brentford with the longer term learning and stability in mind?

Phil: It's a tough choice, Martin, but it certainly has not had the desired impact at Sheffield United and Forest with Chris Wilder returning and Nuno Espirito Santo being appointed at the City Ground. Far too early to make any considered judgement on Oliver Glasner at Palace.

Vincent Kompany had credit in the bank for taking Burnley up but it's been a miserable season and they seem simply resigned to going down and maybe letting him try again next season. There is no-one at Everton to make a decision on Sean Dyche even if they wanted to, which is very unlikely. Thomas Frank has done a top-class job at Brentford despite recent struggles while if the art of good management is getting the best out of what you have then Rob Edwards is doing incredibly well at Luton Town. They could still stay up.

There are considered reasons why they are all still in their jobs.

I think the prospect of relegation can induce panic and clubs must also weigh up whether there is anyone out there who could do any better. A very hard choice and only the final league table will tell if the right decision has been taken.

Sheffield United came within minutes of claiming their fourth Premier League win of the season against Bournemouth, but they were forced to settle for a draw after Cherries forward Enes Unal scored in the 91st minute to level things up.

Former Blades striker Carl Asaba says he is "gutted" for Chris Wilder's team, who showed "commendable spirit" but find themselves still sitting bottom of the league.

"After the Arsenal match, you would've taken a point away at Bournemouth," he told BBC Radio Sheffield's Blades Heaven podcast.

"Nobody gave us a chance. Everyone was thinking it was going to be 3-0. I'm just gutted for the players and the manager. I think the spirit we've seen from the majority of the players was just so commendable.

"They give so much. Defensively, Oli McBurnie is our best header of the ball and when he came off, every ball they played into the box, they looked dangerous from.

"It's a good point away from home, but I just feel sorry because it should've been three. I do feel there's a couple of people who can do more to help their team-mates, but the majority on the pitch gave everything they had.

"Outstanding [George] Baldock, outstanding [Jack] Robinson, [Ollie] Arblaster was brilliant, [Ivo] Grbic is a time-wasting extraordinaire.

"All right, we're disappointed we didn't get the three points, but the spirit was there. They worked really hard and they have come away with a point. There's been games this season where they have worked really hard and come away with nothing.

"So that's a big, big point for them. We've got three weeks now, three positive weeks with something to build on and a performance to look back at and try to improve on."

Listen to the full podcast on BBC Sounds

Image source, Getty Images

Former Chelsea midfielder Jody Morris and former Tottenham defender Stephen Kelly both believe Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder should be planning ahead for a Championship promotion push next season.

The Blades missed the chance to move eight points from safety after conceding late to Bournemouth on Saturday and look all but doomed to relegation.

"They'll be really disappointed not to hold on to that," Kelly told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast. "You don't want to relegate teams but realistically you think of the points they have on the board at the moment - are they going to double that within the time they have? It's not going to happen.

"You feel sorry for them but it's about galvanising and building for next season. I'm sure Wilder's thinking 'right, what am I going to do? I'll pick the bones out of this squad, regroup, and see who has the mentality to get this team back up'.

"They'll want to have a better go at it next time."

Morris stated: "Bournemouth were definitely the better team but when you're 2-0 up with 15 minutes to go it's an absolute killer blow to not bring home the three points.

"Chris Wilder, for me, is the the one who needs to be in charge there looking at next season. He needs to be looking at that thinking 'can we bounce back to the Premier League?'

"He's done it before. I think Wilder's the one.

"You have to be dealing with the fact you're losing a lot of games but making sure you're not too down going into next season because he'll be thinking ahead."

• Did you know? Sheffield United had nine shots on target against Bournemouth, their most on record in a single Premier League game (since 2006-07).

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Gary Lineker introduces highlights and analysis from Saturday's five Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up on the action on BBC iPlayer.

Listen back to Saturday's BBC Radio 5 Live and 5 Sports Extra match commentaries in full:

• Crystal Palace v Luton Town

• Arsenal v Brentford

Matthew Howarth
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Enes Unal's late equaliser was harsh on Sheffield United, who responded to Monday's humiliation at home by Arsenal with a spirited showing on the south coast.

Unsurprisingly perhaps, the visitors looked short of confidence in the early stages as Bournemouth started on the front foot.

But Dominik Solanke's penalty miss appeared to breathe new life into Wilder's men, who were rewarded for their efforts when Gustavo Hamer beat Neto for his third Premier League goal.

Sheffield United had conceded 18 goals in their previous five top-flight matches, but they defended resolutely in the first half and appeared on course for three precious points after Jack Robinson capitalised on Neto's lapse in concentration to double their advantage.

However, it was one-way traffic after Dango Ouattara had halved the deficit with just over a quarter of an hour of normal time remaining, with Unal's last-gasp finish denying the Blades a precious victory.

The late goal was a bitter pill to swallow, but Wilder will be heartened by his team's display as he prepares to meet club owner Prince Abdullah in Riyadh next week.

Enes Unal's stoppage-time equaliser rescued a point for Bournemouth and denied Sheffield United a precious three points in their fight for Premier League survival.

The Turkey international, on loan from Getafe, headed in his first goal for the club in the first minute of added time, moments after having a header from a similar position cleared of the line.

The goal was harsh on Sheffield United, who were much improved from Monday's chastening defeat at home by Arsenal and had led 2-0 until the 74th minute at Vitality Stadium.

Gustavo Hamer opened the scoring in the first half after Bournemouth goalkeeper Neto had parried Jayden Bogle's low shot into his path, his goal coming 13 minutes after Dominik Solanke had skied an early penalty for the Cherries.

Solanke won the spot-kick after being caught late by Tom Davies but slipped in the run-up, the ball sailing high over the crossbar after hitting the striker's standing foot.

The visitors were gifted a second goal midway through the second period when Neto punched a corner into the head of Solanke and it fell into the path of Robinson, whose close-range shot struck the inside of the post on its way over the line.

Solanke had a goal disallowed by the video assistant referee after handling the ball inside the six-yard area, and Dango Ouattara's emphatic header gave the Cherries hope before Unal completed the fightback.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from elsewhere?

Bournemouth fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

How did you rate the side's performance, Blades fans?

Follow all of the reaction here

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