Blackwell scours market to find defensive bargain

THE clock is ticking on Sheffield United’s promotion push after the departure of defender Matthew Kilgallon.

Although manager Kevin Blackwell is keen on Portsmouth’s Aaron Mokoena, West Bromwich Albion’s Leon Barnett and Reading’s Matthew Mills – the Blades are unlikely to fund a major outlay in the transfer market amid the current financial pressures at Bramall Lane.

The Blades missed out on promotion to the Premier League last season after selling prize asset James Beattie to Stoke City in the January transfer window and a similar scenario is again looming large on the horizon.

Speaking ahead of tonight’s home game with Reading – which the Blades need to win to return to the top six – Blackwell admitted that he would have to rely on the loan market to replace Kilgallon, sold for an estimated 2m to Sunderland last week.

“I want a replacement for Matthew, if I can find one, but it’s proving a lot harder to do than I would have thought,” he said. “It is going to have to be the loan market. I will be quite honest.

“Clubs think that Sheffield United is loaded with the Carlos Tevez money and that is not necessarily the case,” he said. “We are a Championship club that lost our parachute payment (last season) and (chief executive) Trevor Birch has got to run the club prudently and I will try and assist wherever I can.

“It is a similar situation to last season with the strikers – I didn’t want to lose James Beattie and we never replaced him,” he said. “That’s why I wanted this transfer window to open and shut in 30 seconds – so I could keep my centre-half – but I hoped for that last season with James Beattie and it didn’t work and it hasn’t worked out this season.”

Asked how frustrating he found the situation, Blackwell said: “Massive. You are building something, you can see what you are doing, and all of a sudden, some of your integral parts are taken away and you have got to, somehow, try and get replacements.

“You realise that you are never going to get what you are replacing.

“It will take time to do that and, unfortunately, time is not on your side when you are trying to build a team to get promoted to the Premier League.”

Defender Jonathan Fortune, who has been hampered by injuries for 18 months, has stepped into Kilgallon’s boots for now after Marcel Seip tore a hamstring in the warm-up against Bolton Wanderers.

Dutch defender Seip had shown real promise in his first few appearances on loan from Plymouth Argyle, but the injury is symptomatic of the Blades’ injury woes this season.

While Fortune has declared an intention to ‘save the club money’ by proving his worth, Blackwell clearly accepts the need to bring in additional competition.

“We have one or two lined up and hopefully something can happen in the next 24 hours,” he said.

“Who knows if it will happen? It comes down to finances, it comes down to availability, and what positions other clubs are in.”

Blackwell confirmed that former Doncaster Rovers defender Mills, who joined Reading in a 2m deal earlier this season, was among his targets, saying: “I thought he did very well at Doncaster.

“He went to Reading but he has not settled there very well. We are looking at a few players and Matt is definitely one I have looked at.”

Blackwell is also keen on Mokoena – a target last season when playing for Blackburn Rovers – but who is now at crisis club Portsmouth where crippling debts and pressure from the taxman have led to a firesale of Avram Grant’s first-team squad.

West Brom defender Barnett, meanwhile, played under Blackwell at Luton Town and is currently on loan to Championship rivals Coventry City.

There was yet more bad news for the Blades yesterday when it emerged that defender Gary Naysmith had suffered a setback in his bid to return to action after knee surgery.

The Scottish international snapped cruciate knee ligaments nine months ago and was on the road to recovery in November playing reserve team football.

Blackwell revealed that Naysmith, 31, will now be sidelined for another six weeks due to a tissue problems in the joint.

Tonight’s opponents Reading have reached the fifth round of the FA Cup after impressive victories over Liverpool and Burnley but are six points adrift of safety in the Championship relegation zone.

Midfielder Brian Howard makes his first return to Bramall Lane since being sold to Reading four months ago while James Harper, who joined the Blades on loan as part of the same deal, is also eligible to play.

Referee: PT Crossley (Kent)

Last six games: Blades LWDWWL, Reading DLDWLW

Last time: Blades 0 Reading 2, November 15, 2008, Championship.