Sheffield United are enduring a tough time of things of late in League One, with fan pressure directed towards both management, players, and the board, there is a bad feeling around the place in general.

The Blades sit in 11th position in the table, a million miles away from where expectation was set at the start of the season as they set out to win promotion.

Manager Nigel Adkins has a squad full of talent to choose from, both young and old, and this has been one of the main problems with the season as he has struggled to find a settled team.

There are some players in the squad who deserve their place and are often seen as integral parts of the squad.

However, as with any squad, there are always likely to be players who are looked upon as being top quality, when in actual fact they are failing to deliver.

Here, FLW writer Lee Connor takes a look at THREE Sheffield United players who could be considered overrated this season.....

[ffc-gallery]

PRESS THE IMAGE BELOW TO SEE THE 3 PLAYERS!

adkins998221

[/ffc-gallery]

 

Dean Hammond

hammond

Despite only being on loan, so much more was expected from United fans from Hammond.

The former Southampton and Leicester captain was seen as a brilliant piece of business by manager Nigel Adkins when he signed him up until the end of the season, but he has been nowhere near what was expected.

Hammond is seen as someone with Premier League experience and often the first name on the team sheet, however he has looked sluggish in terms of fitness and often picks up yellow cards for clumsy and reckless challenges.

He has scored only one goal for the Blades, and has contributed little in terms of assists either. If Hammond was hoping for a permanent move in the summer, on current form, he may have to look elsewhere.

Diego De Girolamo

de girolamo

Seen by many when he broke in to the first team a few seasons ago as the next big thing out of the academy, "Diego" has done nothing of note since.

He haggled with former manager Nigel Clough over playing time and a new contract, before finally signing a new deal when Nigel Adkins took over.

He has yet to make a single first team appearance this season and has spent most of his time playing in the reserves. National press often report he is linked with moves to huge clubs like Juventus and AC Milan due to his Italian roots, but this seems a long long way off at the moment.

Diego needs to knuckle down and get in the United first team. Only then will we be able to make a full assessment of his abilities going forward, which at the moment, appear short of the required standard.

Martyn Woolford

woolforddd

Woolford arrived at Bramall Lane in the summer on a free transfer after leaving Millwall.

A seasoned performer in the Championship, he was seen by many as a great coup for the team after previously working with manager Nigel Adkins at Scunthorpe.

Woolford though, despite his reputation, has looked a shadow of the player who once scored a hat trick at Bramall Lane for Scunthorpe. He has looked slow on the ball and off the pace for much of the season, as well as low on confidence.

Another player to have only contributed 1 goal to the cause this season, he is another example within the Blades squad of a player who is rated highly, but failing to achieve.