Sheffield United enter transfer race for Manchester City man

Sheffield United are one of a number of clubs in the running for Manchester City starlet James McAtee, according to reporter Alan Nixon.

The Blades’ Championship campaign kicks off this evening when they make the trip to Vicarage Road to face Watford, but their transfer business looks nowhere near done going into the final month of the window.

Paul Heckingbottom has already added one attacking midfielder from the Premier League to his squad in the last week in Brighton’s Reda Khadra, and now he’s eyeing up another in the form of McAtee.

The 19-year-old appeared six times for Man City last season, making his debut back in September in an EFL Cup clash against Wycombe Wanderers, before going on to play in the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League.

McAtee’s main source of appearances though came in the under-23’s Premier League, where he put teams to the sword with 18 goals and seven assists in 23 appearances, winning the competition’s Player of the Season award in the process.

As reported by Football Insider in the last few days, McAtee has been given the green light to head out on loan from the Premier League champions, with Sheffield United one of those clubs looking to land his signature.

The Verdict

McAtee has quite clearly outgrown development squad football now and it’s time for him to branch out and get experience elsewhere.

Whilst Premier League clubs have been reportedly interested this summer, it’s far more likely that McAtee will get regular minutes in the Championship.

There is a whole host of clubs that would love to secure his signature for the season, but on paper you wouldn’t necessarily say that Sheffield United are a club that are in desperate need of an attacking midfielder.

Reda Khadra has just