Championship outfit Sheffield United will consider bids of around £25m for star midfielder Sander Berge during the summer transfer window, according to a report from The Star.

The 24-year-old is one first-teamer that could be sold following the Blades' failure to win promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, with Norwegian seeing his side lose out in the play-off semi-final to eventual winners Nottingham Forest.

Initially arriving at the club for a £22m fee back in January 2020, he was tipped to become one of the South Yorkshire outfit's star players but injuries have proven to be disruptive to his development.

 

 

A setback in the early stages of the season prevented Berge from making an early impression in the second tier - but managed to put together a string of promising performances towards the latter stages of the campaign as a goalscoring threat for Paul Heckingbottom's side.

Football League World believes major interest in his services has ceased at this point, though a move could potentially materialise at some point with Yorkshire Live reporting that an English top-tier side are keeping tabs on his situation.

This is mixed news for the Blades' coaching staff who are keen to keep hold of one of their prized assets beyond the summer after seeing him play a part in guiding United to a top-six finish at the end of last term.

He may be sold if a sizeable offer does come in though, with officials at Bramall Lane open to considering a £25m bid for his services if an approach of this magnitude materialises.

The Verdict:

Even this price tag is likely to be too much for sides considering he hasn't exactly stood out as one of the best players in the second tier during the 2021/22 campaign despite his pedigree.

Part of this is down to game time and with the Norwegian only 24, clubs may be willing to pay slightly over the odds to recruit him, but still probably wouldn't want to meet the £25m price tag considering he hasn't done enough at Bramall Lane just yet for the Blades to earn a profit on this deal.

Heckingbottom's side may even want a sell-on clause in this agreement, another factor that could deter sides from making a serious bid for his services considering they will want to negotiate the cheapest deal possible.

The Blades would probably be wise to make an initial loss on Berge but include a sell-on clause and add-ons to give them the best possible chance of generating more money from his sale in the future, something that may be ideal for all parties at this stage.

He only has two years left on his deal and after the summer window closes, his value is only likely to reduce further as his contract continues to run down, so they should actively be looking to offload him if they can't tie him down to fresh terms in the coming months.

Considering they are still in the second tier though, he probably wouldn't put pen to paper on an extension yet.