Mansfield Town v Sheffield United: Michael Cooper on last season's struggles and using them in 2026-27
Mansfield Town v Sheffield United Michael Cooper has been a strong reflection of Sheffield United over two years at Bramall Lane
After an outstanding debut season, he was one of a number of players whose levels dropped in 2025-26 as the team finished 13th.
But in explaining why it happened, the 26-year-old is confident not only that all that is behind him, but that he can use it to have a good 2026-27.
It starts with Sunday’s League Cup tie at Mansfield Town.
"It was difficult, struggling with a little bit of form," he admits.
"Niggles weren't helping. There were just times I couldn't train right and in games I just wasn't feeling as sharp.
"There were definitely goals going in I should have done better with.
"But I'm definitely just using last season as a little bit of a reminder that you've got to get back on the horse and get performances back to where I want them to be.
"Equally, it was my decision to really push through and get myself out on the weekends because that is the most important thing.
"I feel like I would have been letting myself and the club down if I wasn't because we were struggling. It would have been easy to leave it for a few weeks but I really wanted to try and put things right.
"Maybe it all added up, but I wouldn't have changed my decisions."
After missing the final three months of last season with a knee injury, he is both refreshed and spurred on by the campaign.
"I've had it before where I didn't have a full pre-season," he recalls. "You do feel like you're playing catch-up for a few months. So to get a good amount of minutes in, train every day as I wanted to, and nail the gym, I'm feeling positive.
"The message has been this pre-season we've got to use that (season) and learn from it, in terms of game management or mentality in games. We're very motivated to put last season right."