Swansea City look north as they travel to their weekend game at Bramall Lane the home of Sheffield United this Friday. Meeting them will be an in form home side who last lost on November 8th three months ago in the South Yorkshire derby. The Blades last League game before the FA Cup break was a 0-0 draw against the same opposition.

The Blades are on a run of ten league games undefeated and thirteen in total when including the two titanic battles again Wrexham recently, and their third round victory over Millwall. This is also a side that beat Burnley 5-2 this season, the task for the Swans is huge. Joe Allen has been training but looks like a last minute decision for Russell Martin. Joel Latibeaudiere and Steven Benda are most certainly out, and for some time. Liam Walsh has had some time in a competitive game but possibly this could be a week too soon for him.

We will have the latest team news and comments from both club head coaches later today and tomorrow.

Another Championship tale of woe
Sheffield United are an interesting proposition on Saturday, they have numerous players out of contract at the end of the season and the club have been under a transfer embargo since the middle of January. This means current manager Paul Heckingbottom was unable to strengthen his squad ahead of the second half of a gruelling season. Well, his opposite number in the dugout this weekend knows all about that but for many differing reasons.

Football 365 report on the club off the pitch, and current owner Prince Abdullah.

Prince Abdullah has been involved at Bramall Lane for almost a decade. He became co-owner of the club in 2013 and took sole ownership six years later after winning a High Court case against former co-owner Kevin McCabe. But Sheffield United have been up for sale for some time. It had been reported that the club was on the brink of being sold to the American businessman Henry Mauriss last year, but this failed after Mauriss failed to persuade the EFL that he had the available funds because he was using bonds rather than loans to fund the purchase. It was reported at the time that Prince Abdullah wanted £115m for the club.

The embargo we are told reflects missed payments to Liverpool for Rhian Brewster and the issues surrounding Anel Ahmedhodzic joining the Blades from Malmo. All this and now Nigerian businessman Dozy Mmobuosi, an alleged billionaire wants to buy the club. Unfortunately he comes with a mysterious past and one of his current businesses an airline called ‘Tingo’ is being questioned as to its actual existence. This after ‘alleged’ changes in livery on an Airbus to reflect Tingo Airlines as a legitimate operator on Instagram.

Doesn’t football attract some beauts ?

The championship and Sheffield United don’t need this murkiness and obfuscation across its bows when the club on the pitch are really doing exceptionally well. There is clear financial ambiguity at Sheffield United, today the club can be bought for ninety million pounds, just a few months away from securing two hundred million pounds if they get promoted. Heckingbottom regardless does have selection issues. The club can’t offer they’re soon to be out of contract players anything unless the football league see the contracts first, and of course signing anyone is an impossibility. The manager has done exceptionally well under the circumstances, but let’s not forget he has had millions to play with, numbers which Swansea City can only dream about.

Mad this football lark eh ? Makes a few boogeymen and oddities at Swansea look like child’s play.

Sheffield United v Swansea kicks off on Saturday February 11th 2023 at 3pm.

Photographs licensed from Reuters

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