Where are the last 10 Sheffield United January signings now? | OneFootball

The January transfer window can be an interesting time. Motives for signings during this part of the season usually fall into two categories. Either completing unfinished summer business or signing reinforcements that will only last the remainder of the season.

For Sheffield United, this January is a step into the unknown with a third motive at play. A new ownership in charge of the signings could see a player influx to appease fans. Or it could see a bunch of rumours that amount to just one or two signings.

In a time of uncertainty and excitement, what can we gleam from what happened to the last ten players who joined Sheffield United in January?

January 2024

Mason Holgate

Technically, Mason Holgate was signed in February. So, the list is off to a great start. Fortunately, 1 February 2024 was part of last year’s January transfer window.

Less fortunate was Mason Holgate’s debut for the Blades when he signed on loan from Everton. On 3 February 2024, Holgate was part of the Blades’ side that lost 5-0 to Aston Villa at Bramall Lane. It was also the second time Holgate had lost 5-0 during a debut last season, after conceding 5 to Sunderland on his Southampton debut.

Outside of his poor luck in debuts, Holgate played a further nine games for the Blades. His main other notable moment on the Blades’ journey towards relegation was being sent off against Brighton in the 13th minute. Fittingly, the ten players left on the field couldn’t stop Brighton and lost 5-0.

In the summer, Holgate returned to Everton before being loaned out to West Brom for the second time in his career. He has currently played 13 games for the Baggies and has even scored a goal in the Championship this season. He also played eight minutes against the Blades at the Hawthorns in early December.

Ultimately, the main benefit to his time at the club was allowing Wilder to finally manage him and ending recurring rumours of his impending move to Bramall Lane. In fairness to Holgate, whilst he may have seen a few thrashings in his Blades career, it was hardly his fault and was part of being a Blades’ defender last season.

Ivo Grbic

When Grbic signed for the Blades from Atletico Madrid on 26 January 2024, his signing was met with some enthusiasm. After all the Blades had suffered multiple heavy defeats in the first half of last season.

Unfortunately, in his ten appearances for Sheffield United last season, Grbic was unable to slow down the goals conceded rate. His debut saw a 5-2 FA Cup defeat and his Premier League debut saw the Blades lose 3-2 to Crystal Palace. During his Premier League debut, Grbic was substituted on the 52nd minute due to concussion protocol.

Across his ten appearances, Grbic managed no clean sheets and conceded 31 goals in all competitions.

Earlier this season before being loaned out to Rizespor, Grbic was in net for his first Blades’ win against Wrexham in the EFL Cup as the Blades won 4-2. But the signing of Michael Cooper saw Grbic’s playing chances reduced and he left for his Turkish loan.

In Turkey, Grbic has played 12 times for Rizespor and has collected two clean sheets. He has also only conceded 17 goals so far this season for the club showing his decent ability as a goalkeeper.

Whilst he will probably never dislodge Cooper as No.1, Grbic’s time in Turkey so far suggests Ivo was yet another victim of the Blades poor form last season and isn’t a bad goalkeeper.

Sam Curtis

Curtis joined the Blades on 25 January 2024 from St. Patricks Athletic of the Irish Premier Division. The right-back, now 19, went on to make one appearance for the Blades on 11 May 2024 against Everton playing 27 minutes. He entered the field to replace Oliver Arblaster making just 15 touches and successfully completing four passes.

This season, Curtis headed out on loan to Peterborough United. After an initial good start to the loan, Curtis saw an injury rule him out and he missed most of October. He returned to play three times in December and on New Year’s Day. In total, Curtis played 17 times and started ten games for the Posh before being recalled by the Blades on 2nd January.

Ben Brereton-Diaz

(Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Brereton-Diaz was the most effective signing of the January 2024 window and if rumours are to be believed he could prove to be the highlight of this year’s winter window.

In just 14 Premier League appearances, the Chile international scored six goals and got one assist. A decent record of a goal contribution every other game.

After his loan expired with the Blades, Brereton-Diaz went back to Villareal. With the Spanish club selling him to Southampton reportedly for a £7 million fee. His time on the South Coast hasn’t worked out after ten Premier League appearances for the Saints, he is yet to score. With Southampton currently sitting bottom of the Premier League.

All of this is reportedly leading Brereton-Diaz back to Bramall Lane.

January 2022

Charlie Goode

Goode joined the Blades on loan from Brentford on 31 January 2022. Goode only played twice for the Blades as they failed to gain promotion through the Championship playoffs.

He has since had spells with Blackpool and Wigan Athletic. Recently, he joined Stevenage but has only played 6 times for the club scoring once due to a broken leg. The injury sustained during a 2-0 defeat to Exeter City has seen him out since late September.

Adam Davies

(Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)

Since becoming, Paul Heckingbottom’s first first-team signing, Adam Davies has become a reliable no.2 for the Blades. Whilst, he has always played backup to Wes Foderingham and now Michael Cooper. He had made 14 appearances for United and left the pitch with five clean sheets. His goals conceded (14) leaves him with a record of a goal conceded per game.

In his three years at the club, Davies has gone from trusted Heckingbottom shot stopper to one of the current longest serving members of the squad.

Connor Barratt

The Blades signed the young defender from Birmingham City on an undisclosed fee on 21 January 2022.

Barratt joined the Blades U18s and helped them to win their league title unbeaten. He even stepped up to the U21s and became a consistent player for the side.

He was loaned out by the Blades to Solihull Moors last season and made one appearance in the National League.

Now aged 20, Barratt has signed for Barnsley and currently plays as part of their U21s. He has yet to play for the Reds but has been assigned the squad number 29. Possibly one to look out for in future years.

January 2020

Panagiotis Retsos

Possibly one of Wilder’s weirdest signings as Blades boss beaten only by the next player on this list. Retsos joined the Blades on loan on 31 January 2020, from Bayer Leverkusen.

His only appearance for the club came against Reading in the fifth round of the FA Cup with the Blades beating Reading 2-1 after extra time.

Retsos wouldn’t make a single Premier League appearance for the Blades as the league was suspended for the pandemic. He also didn’t extend his loan deal after football resumed later on in the year.

Since, his time at Bramall Lane, Retsos has been he has been loaned to Saint Ettienne, left Leverkusen for Hellas Verona and after an initial loan spell joined Olympiacos. He has found the most settled spell of his career with the Greek side playing 117 games and scoring once and getting two assists since joining in 2023.

He has also won the UEFA Europa Conference League with Olympiacos last season, a great feat with the club he spent eight years in the academy of. Safe to say he has been very successful since leaving Bramall Lane.

Richairo Zivkovic

Loaned to the Blades from Changchun Yatai, Zivkovic was signed as an extra striker to help supplement the Blades attack. For, possibly weirder to write than his transfer, a Champions League qualification push.

He played five matches for the Blades and didn’t register a goal. All of his appearances were from the bench with his longest time on the pitch being 38 minutes on the final day against Southampton.

Since leaving United, Zivkovic has played for Guangzhou R&F on loan, Red Star Belgrade and Emmen. Also he has scored 15 goals in 19 games for Singaporean Premier League side Lion City Sailors and is now on the books of Bangkok United. He has scored 11 goals and got 5 assists for the Thai League Club. Plus he has also changed national allegiance from the Netherlands to Curacao.

Sander Berge

The final and most successful on the list in terms of his time at Sheffield United. Sander Berge joined the club on 30 January 2020. Berge became a cult hero, and was a considerable coup when signed from Genk.

He made a 109 appearances for the club scoring 15 goals and 12 assists in his time at Bramall Lane. He also helped the Blades to secure promotion back to the Premier League in 2022-2023.

In the summer of 2023, Berge left the club for fellow promoted side, Burnley and we all know how that turned out for us afterwards.

After the Clarets and the Blades were relegated, Berge moved to Fulham in summer 2024. He has now become a regular for the Cottagers playing 16 games in total and 14 of their 20 Premier League matches this season.

Takeaways

Ultimately, Sheffield United’s last ten January signings are a mixed bag. Sander Berge has played the most times for the club and helped the side back to the Premier League. Whilst, Ben Brereton-Diaz became so beloved he’s looking likely to sign for the club for a second successive January.

If the list has proved anything, the January window is a difficult time to be signed for footballers at Sheffield United. Join while the side is doing well it is possible that at worst you may become a good pub quiz question in years to come. Join during a poor season, like Grbic and Holgate, you may receive a lot of criticism for the thankless task of trying to add something positive to an already doomed season.