It seems much longer ago than it was since there was a raft of excitement around Bramall Lane as Sheffield United confirmed the signing of Rhian Brewster.
Brewster signed for the Blades in October of 2020, with the total package said to be worth around £23.5m. At the time, Chris Wilder hailed the signing, believing United had got one of the hottest properties in the country.
“At the top of the pitch we have one of the country’s hottest properties from Liverpool and for him to sign permanently here is fantastic for everyone concerned,” Wilder said at the time.
However, since then, Brewster’s time with United has been nothing short of a nightmare. He has scored just five times, suffered a serious injury which ruled him out while playing well last season, and has lost his regular starting spot this season to Iliman Ndiaye and Oli McBurnie. Indeed, Brewster has just one goal to his name this season.
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He was given a start against Norwich at the weekend. But while he buzzed about and tried to make things happen in the 18 yard box, it was another blank and it wasn’t until Brewster went off that United’s fightback really started.
Sheffield United Need The Rhian Brewster Who Jurgen Klopp Loved
There is no doubt most Sheffield United fans want Rhian Brewster to do well. However, as we have written on here before, there is only so much time you can give a player.
That being said, Brewster is only 22 and can still play a key role this season. There is a player in there somewhere. In fact, at the time he signed, Jurgen Klopp admitted he’d been loathed to agree to the deal.
“It would not be possible for me to understate my love, respect and admiration for Rhi. Such a special guy on and off the pitch. I’m not going to lie, agreeing to that transfer was really hard,” Klopp wrote ahead of United v Liverpool.
“He is a natural-born goal scorer. It’s in his DNA. He is a coach’s dream as he is so eager to learn but also a beacon of positive energy. He had some really hard moments with us, but throughout he never once lost belief and he was always someone who would light up a room, even when he experienced really tough times.”
There can be no doubting that positive energy Klopp talks about it on display. However, the questions come when you look at the ‘natural-born goal scorer’ tag. So far, there has been little evidence of that from young Rhian. Of course, he is doing his best to put it right but he needs those goals to come soon.
Brewster Can Learn And Still Come Good
At United, Brewster has the perfect man to learn off in Billy Sharp. The experienced skipper showed against Norwich how you can still impact a game without scoring.
Sharp’s busy play in the box and use of his body allowed him to scuff an effort across goal which saw Ben Osborn get one goal back for United on Saturday. That is something Brewster can bring to his game.
We saw last season in his brief run of form that the finishing is there. Indeed, Sharp himself has singled out Brewster for how good he is in front of goal in training.
But that training form needs to translate onto the pitch soon. Yes, Paul Heckingbottom has preferred front two. But when the minutes or starts do come, Brewster simply has to start taking his chance. Jurgen Klopp clearly had belief in the England under-21 ace. Now, it’s about time Sheffield United saw that version of Brewster.
