Sheffield United invited Iliman Ndiaye's agent to the negotiating table regarding a new contract just after he made his international debut for Senegal in June, according to a report from The Star.

The 22-year-old has been one of the first names on the teamsheet for the Blades this term, recording nine goals and two assists in 21 league appearances with his contributions being crucial to Paul Heckingbottom's side's positive start to the 2022/23 campaign.

Scoring seven times in 30 appearances last season, United were fully aware of his importance to the first team even before the start of this term with his performances earning him international recognition.

 

 

Called up by Aliou Cisse for Senegal in the summer, he made his international debut in June against Benin before going on to appear against Iran in September.

It was unclear whether he would be selected for the World Cup though considering he was only a substitute in those first two games - but Cisse decided to pick him and with that - he was given an opportunity to impress in Qatar.

And he certainly did that, recording an assist against Qatar and helping his side get to the round of 16 with Ndiaye appearing in three of their four games at the international tournament.

Unfortunately for the Blades, they may receive several offers for him in January considering he's unlikely to sign a new deal until next month is over. And it has now been revealed that United have wanted to secure a new deal for the 22-year-old since the summer.

The Verdict:

You can understand why the Blades will want to get him tied down to a new deal because he's becoming one of their most integral players but his contract expires in the summer of 2024.

That's when Sander Berge's deal expires too - and they won't want to lose both for free at that point - even though they will surely want to keep hold of both for at least the remainder of this season as they look to give themselves the best chance of getting back to the Premier League at the second time of asking.

At this stage, Ndiaye may benefit from not signing a new deal because that will only allow him to attract more interest from elsewhere and that could give him plenty of options to pick from in the summer.

The Blades aren't guaranteed to win promotion this season despite their strong start, so the Senegal international may want to keep his options open and you can't exactly blame him for that.

However, it's unclear how he would deal with a lot of noise surrounding his future and in the end, it could be detrimental to him so signing a new deal may not be the worst idea in the world.

He may want a release clause to be inserted into a new deal though and that's understandable because it may make it easier for another side to take him off United's hands if he wants to leave.