Sheffield United v Barnsley: Essential for Blades to retain new crop of talent

SHEFFIELD United midfield battler Nick Montgomery has urged the Bramall Lane club to resist the temptation of selling their youngsters this summer.

A decade ago, Montgomery, 29, was part of an exciting generation of Bramall Lane kids who helped steer the club back to the Premier League.

Now, a crop of new talent is emerging as the Blades fight desperately to stay out of League One.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Teenagers Harry Maguire, Jordan Slew and Erik Tonne are all likely to be involved in today’s crunch game with Barnsley as the Blades seek the victory they need to have any chance of staying alive in the Championship.

Matt Lowton, David McAllister and Danny Philliskirk, who are all 22 or under, will also be there.

Montgomery is only too aware of the Blades’ track record for selling up-and-coming stars and looked on with mixed emotions when team-mates Phil Jagielka, Michael Tonge and Colin Kazim Richards were sold in the wake of the club’s relegation from the Premier League .

Yet more departures followed after the 2009 Championship play-off final defeat to Burnley when defenders Kyle Naughton and Kyle Walker were sold for £10m to Tottenham Hotspur.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Speaking ahead of today’s South Yorkshire derby, Montgomery said: “Everyone knows there are probably going to be changes with players here this summer – but we have got to keep hold of these young lads.

“It has been a breath of fresh air to have the likes Harry, ‘Slewy’, and Danny Philliskirk coming in – it reminds me of when ‘Jags’ and ‘Tongey’ and myself came through all those years ago.

“But, obviously, Sheffield United has been a selling club and we lost both Kyles last season, probably two of the best young full-backs in the country. If we had kept them and the other young lads we have sold, who knows where we would be now?”

Montgomery shares the view, expressed by manager Micky Adams in the Yorkshire Post earlier this week, that the future is still bright thanks to the quality of the youngsters now in the squad. However, he has also urged caution, saying that it is unwise to put too much pressure on their young shoulders.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“So far, they have done fantastically well,” he said. “At the moment, it’s refreshing for the club, for the older players and the management as they have given us all a lift. But it’s still a big step up and you can’t tell everything over one or two games. You can only judge after a good season whether they can get in and maintain it at this level.”

Montgomery, meanwhile, is keeping an open mind about his future, admitting that any decision he makes will be influenced by the direction the club chooses to take at the end of this season.

“For now, I am just concentrating on these last two games,” he said. “I am sure there will be stuff happening in the summer and the club will need to cut its cloth accordingly. Financially, the club is not the power it was a few years ago.

“Obviously, I am 29 now and I want to play at the highest level. I never thought I would be in this situation and I am absolutely devasted that we are anywhere near the bottom of the table.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Blades pulled off back-to-back victories against Bristol City and Reading over Easter but are still six points adrift of safety heading into the final two games of the season.

In order to survive, they need maximum points against Barnsley and, next weekend, Swansea City but also need Crystal Palace or Doncaster Rovers to lose twice and by enough goals to wipe out an inferior goal difference of eight and nine, respectively.

“It’s not mathematically impossible but it’s still a tough ask,” admitted Montgomery. “We have shown, in the last couple of weeks that we have a bunch of lads who are desperate to give the fans something to chant about and keep our hopes alive.

“This is a great club and the fans didn’t deserve to see us going out with a whimper,” he added.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We have now got Darius Henderson and Lee Williamson back but Chris Morgan has been out long term. When you have a small squad, losing a couple of players like that can make all the difference. It’s just a shame they have been out for the majority of the season. But the young lads might not have been given a chance if we had been top of the league so, out of a negative, has come a ray of light.”