"It doesn't look good" - Chris Wilder issues worrying Sheffield United update | OneFootball

The centre back hobbled off in United's Boxing Day defeat, and Wilder says the early signs aren't good.

Chris Wilder has issued a concerning update on centre-back Harry Souttar after the Australian was forced off late on in Sheffield United’s 2-0 loss to Burnley on Boxing Day.

The towering defender limped off towards the end of the defeat against the Clarets, which was United’s first home loss of the season, forcing Wilder’s side to finish the game with just 10 men.

Wilder admitted after the game that Souttar’s injury “doesn’t look good”, as the 26-year-old became the latest to join a growing injury list at Bramall Lane.

Femi Seriki and Tyrese Campbell missed the defeat to Scott Parker’s Burnley, alongside long-term absentee Ollie Arblaster. Meanwhile, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi was unavailable due to a supposed hamstring problem, similar to the one which forced Vinicius Souza off at half-time.

Harry Souttar’s injury looks to be a significant concern for Sheffield United

Souttar has been superb for the Blades so far this season, missing just two league games, one a result of his red card in the 1-0 win over Sunderland back in November.

Furthermore, his injury will be a big concern for Wilder.

According to the Yorkshire Post, Wilder said: “Jes (Rak-Sakyi) wasn’t able to be involved because of a tight hamstring that he had off the back of the game at Cardiff.

“Vini’s (Souza) hamstring tightened up as well. They are minor blows. There might be a big blow with Souttar because that didn’t look great and his reaction to coming off wasn’t good.

“He’s a brave soldier, but that didn’t look great. So we’ll have to wait and see what the results of the scans are.”

United’s Boxing Day defeat ended their run of nine consecutive league wins at Bramall Lane and also saw them concede their first goal at home in over 15 hours of football.

Souttar’s injury could force Sheffield United into the transfer market in January

Losing Souttar for any prlonged period of time would be a significant loss for United.

They’re already light in the centre of their defence with Jack Robinson the only man who’s regularly trusted to step-up to cover one of Souttar or Anel Ahmedhodzic.

There was at least some degree of positive news where Ahmedhodzic is concerned, with the Bosnian coming off the bench to play his first minutes since November in the Burnley defeat.

Given how busy the fixture list is across the New Year and January period, Wilder will surely have to dip into the transfer market if Souttar’s injury will keep him out for anything longer than a week or two.

The Leicester City loanee has been integral to United’s success this season, forming a key part of the backline that has conceded just 13 goals and been the Championship’s second-best defence so far.

While Wilder won’t want to replace Souttar in the long-term, he will surely have to look into the possibility of adding another centre half on loan to cover the period he will miss, otherwise United’s already thin squad may struggle to cope with the demands of January.