Chris Basham and Sheffield United ready to upset Championship big guns

Transfer fees have soared to such an extent that few bat an eyelid any more at £15m signings such as Britt Assombalonga and Ruben Neves, brought in this summer by Middlesbrough and Wolverhampton Wanderers respectively.

Sky high wages such as the £60,000 per week that John Terry will trouser at Aston Villa have also lost the ability to shock in a way that was largely unthinkable during the summer of 2014 when Basham swapped Blackpool for Bramall Lane and the Blades’ attempts to escape the third tier.

It means, ahead of United’s return to the Championship on the back of last season’s record breaking title success, that the 28-year-old and his team-mates will be in the unusual position of underdog.

“I think, for once in my time at this football club, we are not going into a league thinking we are the bookies’ favourite,” said Basham, fresh from signing a new two-year contract extension, to The Yorkshire Post.

“Sheffield United will be seen as beatable, for once. We are not going to be coming up against teams who think they can come to Bramall Lane, sit back, try and hold their own and, hopefully, get a result. That will be different and I know all the fans will be behind us.

“There is, though, still pressure – which, as footballers, we all want. You want to go to these places, give your all and give a good account of yourselves. That is pressure. But it will just be a different pressure, not a case of us having to win every game.

“All the boys are buzzing about it and so far, so good. The gaffer was buzzing after Chesterfield (on Tuesday) that we had won again, especially because players made an impact off the bench. We will need that in this league because there are some massive clubs spending £10m or £15m on players. We are not doing that.”

United, the beneficiaries of two substantial windfalls this summer courtesy of sell-on clauses in the transfers of Harry Maguire and Kyle Walker, may not be splashing the cash in a similar vein to many of their Championship peers.

But Chris Wilder has still been busy in the transfer market. Richard Stearman is the standout signing for a seven-figure sum from Fulham, while decent money has also been spent on Ched Evans, Nathan Thomas and George Baldock. Enda Stevens, a free transfer from Portsmouth, was hugely impressive in Tuesday night’s 2-1 friendly win at Chesterfield.

Other signings are expected, United still being very keen on Southend United’s Ryan Leonard amid competition from Millwall. Ben Reeves, the Milton Keynes Dons midfielder, is another on Wilder’s list of targets who the Blades chief believes can only strengthen the formidable team spirit that took the club to a record-breaking 100 points last season.

Such a policy is prudent in a division where money isn’t always the prerequisite for success, as Huddersfield Town underlined so wonderfully last season by winning promotion to the Premier League on the back of a playing budget dwarfed by most of their peers.

“Ever since I have been watching this division, ever since I was last in it, you always see the hard working teams go up,” added Basham, who was part of the squad that played in the top flight for the Bloomfield Road club.

“Watford, Burnley and Blackpool, when I was there, (were all clubs that went up when) there was no outstanding player. Last season, Huddersfield and also Brighton were the same. Brighton had money towards the end but they were together as well, everyone willing to work their socks off for each other.

“The gaffer is big on that here. We are willing to bring good lads in who are ready to work hard, who are ready to prove themselves to the division and the world.”

Part of Wilder’s attempts to maintain the spirit that proved so important at the Lane last term this week involved ensuring four of his promotion heroes committed their futures to the club. Basham joined Billy Sharp and Paul Coutts in agreeing a deal to 2019, while Kieron Freeman put pen to paper on a three-year extension.

“I am over the moon to stay,” said Basham. “This is my fourth year now and, hopefully, I will get past 150 games in the next few I play. This club has been massively in my heart and it never came into my mind to look anywhere else.

“That is the same for the other boys, too. We all talk to each other, we were all desperate to stay. We want to have the same fun experiences we had last year all over again.”