Sheffield United have apparently agreed a fee with Liverpool for the signing of striker Rhian Brewster.
Despite not being reported by any of the usual sources as yet, the Fourth Official Twitter account has claimed a deal has been agreed between the Blades and the Reds to bring Brewster to Bramall Lane.
Of course, we can’t vouch as such for that source being bang on, but it has been supported by Liverpool site, Empire of the Kop, who claim that two former Liverpool ‘ITK’s’ have backed up the story.
Chris Wilder made no mention of the deal in his press conference this afternoon ahead of the League Cup tie with Burnley. However, he did admit the Blades had asked about Arsenal striker, Florarin Balogun.
Brewster is thought to be a long-term target for United but Liverpool have been playing hardball over the past few weeks, seemingly changing their minds between a loan, a permanent deal, and a deal involving a buy-back clause.
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The signing of Brewster would be a good one. He scored 12 goals in a short space of time last season and looked to be a real prospect while with Swansea.
However, it seems odd that we are suddenly going to pay around £20m for Brewster. That’s the sort of fee being touted about in a lot of reports. To add substance to that, Chris Wilder said weeks ago that it was unlikely we’d go above what we paid for Aaron Ramsdale again this summer.
Finally, he’s also admitted to asking about Balogun at Arsenal. That would mean bringing two players into the club when in reality, there’s probably only squad space for one striker.
The only thing that might have changed here is the performance Monday. We looked a little toothless up top despite the efforts of Oli McBurnie and Billy Sharp, while Lys Mousset is now out injured as well.
It could be then, that the board decide to back Wilder now with an eye on the future, meaning the Brewster permanent deal may well have some legs in it after all.