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Sheffield United's most valuable players

Sports Mole takes a look at the most valuable players in the Sheffield United squad.

As when the season started back in August, there are no standout figures at Sheffield United, with the togetherness of a close-knit group playing a significant part in the club's progress up the English football pyramid.

However, almost every member of the Blades squad, including manager Chris Wilder, has only enhanced their stock during a remarkable first season back in the Premier League.

Sitting in seventh position and just five points adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea, the Yorkshire outfit are in contention to earn a place in the Champions League or Europa League next season.

As the prices of their players rise with every win earned in the top flight, Sports Mole takes a look at who are regarded as the most valuable members of the Sheffield United squad.


Sheffield United's Dean Henderson celebrates after the match on March 7, 2020© Reuters

Having won the hotly-contested race for his signature in January, it will come as no surprise that Sander Berge is ranked as the most expensive at £19.8m. The Norway international may only have 211 minutes of Premier League football to his name right now, but the 22-year-old has the potential to make a name for himself at his current club and a bigger team in the future.

Dean Henderson is currently on loan from Manchester United, but the goalkeeper is valued at £16.2m as a result of his performances at Bramall Lane. The young Englishman jumped at the opportunity to earn regular action with the Blades, and it has resulted in him being left with his pick of clubs should he opt against penning a new contract at Old Trafford.

After becoming mainstays in a three-man backline since leaving Brentford, Jack O'Connell and John Egan are justifiably priced at the same amount of £10.8m. In reality, they would command much higher figures should a high-profile club come calling, but United's success at the back is a result of their partnership, rather than one player impressing more than the other.

At the start of the season, it appeared unlikely that Lys Mousset would become valued in the same bracket as O'Connell and Egan after a poor period at Bournemouth. However, with five goals and four assists to his name from 23 outings, the Frenchman has established himself as a key man at Bramall Lane. While his contributions came in a cluster during the first half of the season, the 24-year-old's potential means that he deserves to be priced at £10.8m.

Sheffield United's Oliver McBurnie reacts on January 21, 2020© Reuters

Further down the list comes Oliver McBurnie, who at £9m is valued at half the fee which United shelled out in the summer. Nevertheless, despite just four top-flight goals, the presence and work-rate of the Scot means that he is an instrumental part of this group.

The same can be said of compatriot John Fleck, who many would have expected to be priced at higher than £7.2m. Despite the arrival of Berge, the playmaker is a certain starter in a midfield three having contributed five goals and two assists. The 28-year-old provides something different to his midfield partners, who take care of the dirty side to help Fleck link up with the attackers.

Enda Stevens and George Baldock come in at just £6.3m and £5.4m respectively, but the pair are important cogs in the wing-back positions. As well as playing crucial roles from a defensive standpoint, the duo have four goals and five assists between them this season. Bigger names will no doubt be linked with a move to the club in the future, but Wilder is unlikely to be in any rush to part ways with the two players.

Billy Sharp is the notable name lower down the list, but a price of just £1.8m is purely down to the striker being 34 years of age. Each of the veteran's three goals this season have come at crucial times, leading to four points being earned in the double-header against Bournemouth and a narrow victory coming versus Norwich City. Nevertheless, his value is irrelevant in the grand scheme of things with Sharp having already turned down opportunities elsewhere in order to remain at his boyhood club.

John Fleck celebrates equalising for Sheffield United on January 18, 2020© Reuters

Full list:

Sander Berge £19.8m
Dean Henderson £16.2m
John Egan £10.8m
Jack O'Connell £10.8m
Lys Mousset £10.8m
John Lundstram £9m
Oliver McBurnie £9m
Panagiotis Retsos £8.1m
John Fleck £7.2m
Oliver Norwood £7.2m
Enda Stevens £6.3m
George Baldock £5.4m
Luke Freeman £3.15m
Chris Basham £2.7m
Muhamed Besic £2.7m
Jack Robinson £2.25m
Ben Osborn £2.25m
David McGoldrick £1.8m
Billy Sharp £1.8m
Jack Rodwell £1.35m
Kieron Freeman £1.35m
Phil Jagielka £900,000
Michael Verrips £900,000
Richairo Zivkovic £720,000
Simon Moore £450,000
Leon Clarke £270,000
Rocky Holmes £225,000

Sports Mole has used figures from Transfermarkt for the purposes of this article.

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Sheffield United's Dean Henderson pictured on January 21, 2020
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