Championship outfit Sheffield United are keeping tabs on Liverpool centre-back Ben Davies ahead of the summer transfer window, according to The Star.

The defender spent the 2021/22 campaign at Bramall Lane as Slavisa Jokanovic's first signing - and though their defence struggled with a switch to a back four - they thrived under the stewardship of Paul Heckingbottom who opted to play three centre-backs again.

With this and their limited number of options at the back, it's a surprise he only made 22 league appearances for the Blades, with John Egan, Chris Basham and Jack Robinson establishing themselves as a solid starting trio towards the end of the season.

This lack of playing time, though he was forced onto the sidelines at times, may rule out another move for the 26-year-old who would have ideally wanted to get more game time under his belt.

However, the Blades are currently lacking in options at centre-back with Charlie Goode returning to Brentford on the expiration of his loan spell and Filip Uremovic also departing following his short-term stay.

With this, at least two centre-backs will need to come in and provide competition to the likes of Egan, Basham and Robinson, all of whom have arguably done enough to be starters again next term. And Davies is one player they are reported to be keeping tabs on ahead of another potential approach to Liverpool, as they potentially look to secure his services again.

The Verdict:

If Davies is open to this move, it shouldn't be too difficult to complete considering Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip, Ibrahima Konate, Joe Gomez, Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams are all ahead of him in the pecking order at Anfield.

Phillips could potentially leave - but Gomez looks set to stay and this could put the final nail in the coffin of Davies' very short time under Jurgen Klopp this summer - with United potentially able to secure a cut-price agreement for his services.

Although you can understand why Heckingbottom's side are reluctant to spend money following their relegation - they generated an initial £24m for Aaron Ramsdale last summer so they should be able to pay the price needed to lure the centre-back to South Yorkshire on a longer-term basis.

Making permanent signings will allow them to build for the long term - and that's why they need to be focusing on getting players like Davies in and looking at the free-agent market rather than using the loan market too heavily.

Forest may have enjoyed success with the loan market in the past 12 months - but the Blades are currently left with a huge void in their team with Morgan Gibbs-White's move to Bramall Lane being temporary - so they need to minimise loan agreements.

Davies is someone they can surely recruit permanently, especially with the likes of Lys Mousset and David McGoldrick set to be off their wage bill when July comes around.