The latest transfer news from around the Championship
Sheffield United are in discussions with Premier League outfit Aston Villa over cutting Louie Barry’s loan move to the Steel City short next month.
Barry, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Hull City, and was on the cusp of joining the Tigers permanently in the summer for £3.5m, has made just nine appearances for the Blades after being signed on loan by former United boss Ruben Selles.
The 22-year-old struggled to make an impact under Selles and then Wilder before he suffered his third knee injury in the space of 12 months.
Currently back at Villa and undergoing treatment on his latest setback, Chris Wilder has confirmed United want to end his season-long loan spell in order to free up finances to strengthen his squad when the January window opens.
“Louie Barry has got an issue with his knee, so we’re in discussions about terminating Louie’s loan, so that’s obviously disappointing for him, but we need fit and healthy footballers,” Wilder said.
“He’s in competition with Gus, Cal, Brooksy, and financially we need to free some money up to use it elsewhere, even though I’ve had some real positive discussions with the board about their enthusiasm about backing my ambitions and our suggestions. With the position we’re in, I think that’s highly commendable, really, that they see a turnaround in the second part of the season.”
The playmaker, who excelled during two loan spells with Stockport County, has endured a nightmare year since returning from Edgeley Park this time 12 months ago.
After arriving at the MKM Stadium in January to much excitement, Barry managed just 165 minutes of action before he suffered his knee injury in the win at Sunderland in late February.
It had been hoped he would return before the season finished, but he endured another setback, which ended any hope of helping City’s quest to avoid relegation to League One.
The Tigers had tried to sign him in the summer, only to be hit by a severe transfer punishment relating to transfer payments which saw them banned from paying transfer or loan fees for three windows, which was reduced to two on appeal.
Despite links suggesting Barry could be a January target for City, Hull Live understands that is not the case, and the Tigers have other targets.
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