Nottingham Forest predicted to make life difficult for Sheffield United in Lewis O'Brien race | OneFootball

FLW's Blades fan pundit cannot see Lewis O'Brien joining the club on loan from Forest in January

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Sheffield United's reported interest in Nottingham Forest midfielder Lewis O'Brien has been deemed unlikely to materialise into an actual loan move in January due to the rivalry between the two clubs.

O'Brien is currently out on loan at MLS side LAFC from Forest, but fresh reports claim that his impressive form in the USA has caught the eye of numerous second-tier clubs ahead of the new year, including the Blades.

TeamTalk have revealed that Sheffield United are among the number of Championship sides that are keeping tabs on O’Brien’s situation as they look to bolster their squads when the transfer window reopens in January, as he is unlikely to figure in Forest’s plans going forward when his loan spell expires.

The 26-year-old was previously a stand-out in the second-tier with Huddersfield Town, but has had a tough time of it since his 2022 move to the City Ground, and is currently featuring in his third loan spell away from Forest, after spending time at DC United and then Middlesbrough last term.

A move to the Blades would offer the chance for him to return to Yorkshire, where he played the best football of his career so far, but a potential deal to take him to Bramall Lane could be scuppered amid damaged relations between the two clubs.

Fan pundit sees Lewis O'Brien move as unlikely due to Forest-Blades rivalry

O'Brien's last Forest appearance came in January 2023, so it is little surprise that his future is not seen to be at the club, yet he would still represent a fine acquisition for any second-tier club, given his previous exploits with the Terriers, and impressive spell at Boro.

He suffered injury issues while on Teesside in the early parts of last season, yet returned to action in the second-half of the campaign and soon became a key man for Michael Carrick, with 13 consecutive starts as Boro lost just three times in that run.

On the face of it, a January move seems like a no-brainer for the Blades in their quest for promotion, yet when we asked FLW's Sheffield United fan pundit Jimmy, of The Blades Ramble YouTube channel for his thoughts on the move, he deemed it unlikely due to poor relations between the two clubs, and given their current talent in midfield.

“We have been linked with Lewis O’Brien long-term, for the past two seasons now, possibly," Jimmy told FLW.

“I know Chris Wilder is a big fan of him, as are a lot of Blades. He often gets mentioned when we discuss transfers and players that we might like to see at the club.

“However, I’m not sure Nottingham Forest want to deal with us. I don’t mean that they won’t, just that they will quite likely make it difficult.

“There’s a fresh rivalry. It goes back some time, but obviously with the recent play-off issues, we just don’t get along as clubs.

“I think there is a genuine dislike between the two clubs. There will be respect there, but they quoted us one price for Joe Worrall, and he went to Burnley for a completely different price.

“The other thing you have to think about is the level of the MLS, where O’Brien is playing currently.

“I don’t think Forest would give us a straight loan like they did with LAFC. So, what are Forest going to want? Are they happy to call him back and loan him out to Sheffield United? I’m not convinced.

“Can we guarantee him a starting spot? No, at the minute. If his place in the team is in the midfield two, then Ollie Arblaster and Vinicius Souza won’t be moved.

“I’m not so sure that this one has got legs, to be honest.

“It would be a good addition for us, but I'm not sure it will happen."

Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest do not see eye to eye

The rivalry between the Blades and the Tricky Trees may not be a conventional derby, but it goes back a long way, and its origins are historically attributed to the miners' strikes of the 1980s, where workers in the pits of Nottinghamshire did not join the strike, while those from Yorkshire, and particularly Sheffield, did.

On the pitch, the two sides have done battle in some key games over the years, notably in the 1990/91 season, as the Blades recovered from 2-1 down to win 3-2, and then went on a miraculous run of games to stay up, despite being bottom of Division One and without a win in 16 games heading into the match.

More recently, the sides have faced off in key play-off ties to get into the Premier League - firstly in 2003, as United won 5-4 on aggregate late into extra-time in the semi-final to seal a place at Wembley, and then recently in 2022, when Forest got their revenge thanks to Brice Samba's penalty heroics after a 3-3 aggregate draw after two games and extra-time.

It remains to be seen whether tensions between the two clubs have reached a point in which they cannot do transfer dealings, but if not, it would certainly not be a shock to see O'Brien in a Blades shirt come January.