Sheffield United stance on Chelsea player and Reda Khadra replacement clarified | OneFootball

Sheffield United view Chelsea 18-year-old Silko Thomas as a development signing and manager Paul Heckingbottom remains keen to sign a replacement for Reda Khadra, according to The Yorkshire Post.

Khadra was recalled by Brighton and loaned out to Birmingham City earlier this month after finding himself down the pecking order at Bramall Lane.

It has been a quiet January window for the Championship club otherwise but they have been linked with a move for Thomas.

The Yorkshire Post has revealed, however, that the Chelsea teenager will be seen as a development signing if he makes the move to the Yorkshire club.

Thomas is on trial with United at the moment and is said to have impressed in a recent U21s game against Wigan Athletic.

The report indicates that despite the interest in Thomas, Heckingbottom still wants to sign a replacement for Khadra.

The 21-year-old scored just once for the Blades but did feature 16 times in total – usually coming off the bench late in games – before he was recalled by his parent club.

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The Verdict

It’s interesting to get some clarification on United’s stance on Thomas.

Being linked with a Premier League youngster is always exciting but it seems the Blades don’t believe that the Chelsea wing-back is ready to have an impact at first team level just yet.

With that in mind, you can understand why Heckingbottom would be keen for the club to bring in a replacement for Khadra.

Though he was hardly a central figure, he offered them some attacking impetus from the bench late on in games.

Narrow margins are vital in the battle for promotion – even with the sizeable cushion that United have over third place at the moment.