Wilson is rueful as Slew bid too good to ignore

Slew, still only 18, joined Rovers in a shock £1m move just minutes before Thursday night’s Premier League transfer deadline.

He had started only eight senior games for the Blades and signed a new two-year deal with the club on the eve of the new season.

However, amid on-going pressure to raise funds as a result of the club’s relegation to League One, the Blades deemed it necessary to cash in on his talent.

Striker Daniel Bogdanovic was also sold, to Blackpool for around £100,000, and Norwegian winger Kristoffer Lokberg joined Ranheim on loan.

“There is no secret about what we have been trying to do – we have been trying to get money into the club,” said Wilson.

“This is nothing that should take anyone by surprise. We have to maximise the situation for ourselves and that’s what the people at the club have done.”

Wilson insists that Slew’s long-term prospects would have been better served by staying at Bramall Lane. His new employers also signed Nigerian international striker Yakubu from Everton on Thursday and have other big name strikers on the payroll in the shape of Jason Roberts, David Goodwillie and Ruben Rochin.

“In my view, Jordan would have been far better off staying with us but that didn’t become an option,” Wilson said. “When this situation comes along it’s difficult not to let a player go.

“It was an eleventh hour deal but he’s going to a Premier League club so, from that point of view, it’s very satisfying to know we have players who they want to utilise or progress.

“You sometimes get things you can’t do anything about and unfortunately from our point of view we couldn’t do anything about the offer for Jordan.

“If the Premier League is dangled in front of people it is very difficult to turn it down, for both the club and more importantly the player.

“In my opinion, his progression would have been best here but it is down to the player and agent so we move on to the next chapter. In terms of Jordan, we wish him all the best because we know he is moving to a very good football club in Blackburn Rovers.”

Wilson described the deadline-day bid by Blackpool to sign midfielder Stephen Quinn as ‘scandalous’.

Although the Blades allowed Maltese international Bogdanovic to move to Bloomfield Road, they refused to throw Quinn into the package on the cheap.

“It wasn’t a bid, it was absolutely scandalous, and not even worth a phone call back,” said Wilson, who expressed his delight that the 25-year-old is staying at Bramall Lane. “The offer was an absolute mess. It was turned down big style. it was an embarrassing offer and I wouldn’t have even made it if I was in their position.”

Overall, Wilson is satisfied that the Blades have achieved a sensible balance between the need to generate money and the need to maintain a squad capable of challenging for promotion.

Although Darius Henderson, Mark Yeates and Jamie Ward have been off-loaded during the window, the Blades have held on to experienced players such as Nick Montgomery and Richard Cresswell and emerging talent such as Harry Maguire and Matt Lowton.

“I didn’t know when I arrived what I would have left at this stage – but I am delighted and now I know exactly what we have at our disposal,” said Wilson.

“I am not happy that I have lost two very good players but I am happy that we know what we can utilise between now and January.

“The window has now shut and people like Stephen Quinn are still with us which is a massive bonus.

“He has been pivotal in everything we have been doing so far this season and will be as we go along. If we had agreed a fee with Blackpool, the player would have been involved in the talks, but there was nothing to tell him about.”

The Blades suffered a setback last night when the Football League confirmed that loan moves for Rangers pair Kyle Hutton and John Fleck had failed to beat the transfer deadline.

Hutton and Fleck, both 20, had agreed to join the Blades on loan until the end of the season. The deals cannot be resurrected until the next transfer window in January due to rules in the Scottish Premier League.

“We will need to bring more players in because we have made a good start and we don’t want to let that go,” Wilson stressed. “These are good quality players who had experience of Champions League football and Premier League football in Scotland.”

Commenting on the reasons for the delay, Wilson insisted that the fault lay at the door of the Football League.

“Their email was down and our email bounced back,” he claimed. “We have the timing of it, we have the proof, but they are not accepting it. They say it was eight minutes late.”

A spokesman for the Football League confirmed that it is the responsibility of all clubs to ensure that the necessary forms are delivered successfully before the 11pm transfer deadline.

The Blades, meanwhile, have announced the departure of Steve Lewis, who was Head of Commercial at the club.