Three Sheffield United players who must return at Bristol City as Sander Berge omission explained

Paul Heckingbottom is facing a huge team selection call for his side's trip to Bristol City on Monday. The Blades boss is currently sweating on the outcome of Oli McBurnie's foot injury and could potentially travel without a senior striker.

Having seen the dynamic of his team constantly change in the last two months as a result of a major injury crisis, he can ill-afford to lose any more players at this stage of the season. With service from wide areas being a big part of his side's chance creation in the early part of the season, focus shifted towards the middle when Jayden Bogle, George Baldock, Chris Basham, Ben Davies and Enda Stevens all suffered injuries at various points.

Sander Berge was given more licence to get forward and Billy Sharp and Morgan Gibbs-White were forming a fruitful partnership. However, Sharp's injury robbed Sheffield United of another route to goal. The captain is not expected back until after the Easter weekend.

For many games it's been a case of finding ways to win and although McBurnie did not find the net in his two outings prior to yesterday's defeat, he led from the front in his partnership with Gibbs-White in those matches against QPR and Bournemouth and had helped Heckingbottom's men pick up four points and keep two clean sheets.

The manager could now be forced to spend the next two days on the training ground looking for another way of winning if he does, as feared, travel with no experienced front men.

One player who has to return is Sander Berge. He was a surprise omission from the starting XI yesterday, with Heckingbottom preferring Ben Osborn alongside Gibbs-White and opting for two number 10s.

"Tactically we made that change to have three up top," Heckingbottom explained.