Why Sheffield United completing this £23.5m deal was a no-brainer given their goalscoring woes

Why Sheffield United have struck gold with a deal for Rhian Brewster

According to BBC, Sheffield United completed the signing of Rhian Brewster from Liverpool for a club-record fee of £23.5million, with the youngster putting pen to paper on a five-year contract at Bramall Lane.

The package for the highly-rated England U-21 international includes a buy-back clause for the next three years while Liverpool will also retain a 15% sell-on clause as a part of the agreement. (h/t BBC)

As per the report, Blades boss Chris Wilder has expressed his delight over finally getting a deal over the line for Brewster, who had been the club’s No.1 target all throughout the summer window. The manager has also hailed the 20-year-old as a ‘natural goalscorer’ while also labelling him as ‘one of the country’s hottest properties’.

Profile

Rhian Brewster spent seven years in the youth ranks of Chelsea before joining Liverpool’s academy in 2015 and quickly established himself as a regular fixture for the Reds at U-18 and U-23 levels. 

The talented Englishman registered eye-watering figures of 13 goals and 10 assists in 28 appearances for Liverpool’s U-23 side but found his route to the first-team blocked by some world-class stars like Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, and Mo Salah.

The 20-year-old made only 4 appearances for Liverpool in the domestic cup competitions before joining Swansea City on loan in the Championship for the second half of the 2019-20 campaign. Brewster bagged an impressive 11 goals in 22 appearances for the Swans as Steve Cooper’s side suffered heartbreak in the playoff semi-final.

Brewster was instrumental in England’s triumphant campaign at the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup in India, finishing as the tournament’s top scorer and winning the Golden Boot award in the process. He currently has 6 caps for his nation’s U-21 side.

Brewster is expected to add more goals to United’s attack

Sheffield United managed only 39 goals en route to their 9th-place finish in the Premier League last term, which was one of the worst scoring records in the entire division. The Blades have endured a torrid start to their PL campaign this season, suffering four straight defeats at the hands of Wolves, Aston Villa, Leeds United and Arsenal.

Most importantly, United failed to score in any of their opening three league fixtures, eventually breaking the duck against Arsenal in their fourth league game of the season. That doesn’t really strike the right chords and clearly represents a continuation of their struggles in front of goal from the previous campaign.

To put things into perspective, Sheffield United had been in dire need of bringing in some attacking reinforcements and the arrival of Rhian Brewster probably couldn’t have come at a better time for Chris Wilder’s side. 

The 20-year-old has long been touted as one of England’s most exciting striking prospects and he definitely deserves a shot at the Premier League after proving his credentials in the Championship last season.

Brewster might need a bit of time to hit the ground running in the top-flight, considering his lack of experience at the highest level, but he looks more than capable of delivering the goods for the Blades moving forward. His talent and potential have never been called into question and the youngster will be hoping for regular minutes to make an impression at Bramall Lane.

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Verdict

The likes of Oliver McBurnie, Lys Mousset, David McGoldrick, and Billy Sharp haven’t really contributed with enough goals following Sheffield United’s promotion to the top-flight last year. With that in mind, the acquisition of a burgeoning young talent like Rhian Brewster is bound to beef up the club’s striking options by increasing competition for places up top.

All in all, the Blades signing Brewster comes as a statement of intent and a much-needed boost to their attack.