Sheffield United v Coventry City: Why off-the-field speculation will never faze Paul Heckingbottom

During spells of his time in charge at Barnsley, he fielded many questions about the future of the club prior to the decision of then majority shareholder Patrick Cryne to sell up.

Right back in his successful early days as caretaker manager at Oakwell in the first half of 2016, there was also a fair bit of speculation regarding his contractual situation, almost on a weekly basis.

Again, he kept focused in a season which ended with two glorious episodes at Wembley for his hometown club.

He also had to cope with the dismissal of an assistant following corruption allegations and the exit of a chief executive at the height of a winter transfer window, for instance.

In his short spell up the M1 at Leeds United, it was not long before the rumour mill got into overdrive with talk that he would be sacked. It was more noise he had to contend with.

At 45, there is not much that the Sheffield United chief has not seen in management.

In the here and now, his current club - riding high and very well placed in the automatic promotion places - are the subject of renewed takeover talk.

If, and it remains a big if, things reach a point where a deal gets over the line next month, it could have a huge impact on the Blades’ season by way of providing funds to Heckingbottom to harden their promotion drive and potentially make it a probability as opposed to possibility as winter turns into spring.

For the time being, his recruitment plans are on hold until things are resolved one way or the other.

With three key league games now coming up in the space of a week, he has enough on his plate to concern himself about. He has been here before.

On takeover talk, he commented: “It has nothing to do with me. All it becomes for me right now is a distraction. When you are asked about January, everything is on hold until something is resolved one way or the other.

“It has an impact upon everything, of course it does. However, it does not have an impact upon us playing Coventry on Boxing Day.

“Unless our current owners and potential new owners want to share the information, it is up to them. I don’t know what the contractual obligations are or how much can or can’t be shared.

"It’s nothing to do with me, it’s not my club or my money. But it becomes a point where it becomes the most important thing if it does happen.”

In terms of importance right now, the arrival of a Coventry side who are making a real pitch for the play-offs should speak for itself.

Like Heckingbottom, Sky Blues counterpart Mark Robins is another calm, shrewd and pragmatic figure who always deals with the cards he is dealt with and is someone who has also experienced with most things that management can throw up.

In recent years, off-the-field headlines have never been far away at Coventry. Only this week, the club were given a suspended points deduction after three Championship games had to be postponed earlier this season because of the state of their pitch.

It is to Robins’s immense credit that Coventry are keeping their show on the road in outstanding fashion on the pitch.

Both the Sky Blues and the Blades have averaged two points per game in their last ten Championship matches. Only leaders Burnley have eclipsed their excellent haul of 20 points.

The Midlanders edged out the Blades in the reverse fixture in October following a late penalty from Viktor Gyokeres.

Previously, they inflicted the most comprehensive defeat of the Heckingbottom era in their meeting in Warwickshire last March when City triumphed 4-1 and the likes of Gyokeres and Callum O’Hare tore United’s backline to shreds.

The Sky Blues also head into the game on the back of an important victory over another form horse’ in Carlos Corberan’s West Brom.

Heckingbottom continued: “They are one of the best. I think it was the games being called off which gave them the slow start and they suffered.

"They are right up there with the form in showing they are one of the best sides along with ourselves, so I am expecting one of the toughest games we are going to have this season.

"I was at the game the other night and it was a really good and competitive game against West Brom.

“They are a team who cause you a lot of problems.

"We have to break down a defence which keeps a lot of clean sheets and keep an attacking team that - regardless of quality of chances - make chances and efforts on goal.

“We will have to be at our best to cause the problems we’d like to."

On the injury front, United must make do without Ben Osborn, Rhys Norrington-Davies and Rhian Brewster, with the latter duo being more longer-term absentees following operations.

Ex-Coventry favourite John Fleck, who is still experiencing pain after a leg fracture earlier this term, is also out.

Heckingbottom said: “He (Fleck) is disappointed to miss any game. He’s disappointed to miss training. It’s just what he does; he enjoys football.”