Struggling Sheffield United's big transfer issue laid bare as Ben Brereton Diaz highlighted as example

Ben Brereton Diaz is setting the standard for Sheffield United’s contingent of loan players, Chris Wilder believes, after the Blades boss highlighted the number of temporary players in his squad as another reason for their current struggle. The Blades travel to Everton this weekend with their relegation already sealed and with only pride to really play for.

There has not been a great deal of that in a nightmare season which has seen them win just three of their 36 league games to date, conceding 100 goals with a goal difference of minus-65 in their 26 defeats. The latest came at the weekend, a 3-1 reverse to Nottingham Forest at Bramall Lane, when Wilder felt a couple of his players “checked out early”.

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One of their loan players, striker Ben Brereton Diaz, took his tally to six goals in 12 league games for the Blades since joining in January from Villareal and has been an undeniable success at Bramall Lane. Another, Mason Holgate, is ineligible to face his parent club at Goodison Park, causing Wilder an extra selection headache with Anel Ahmedhodzic suspended.

United also have James McAtee and Yasser Larouci on a temporary basis while Cameron Archer is essentially a loanee too, with a clause in his deal guaranteeing a return to Aston Villa this summer if the Blades were relegated. “Ben doesn't look like he's a loan player,” Wilder said. “He looks as if he's playing like a Sheffield United player.

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“We've got a lot of loan players and the problem sometimes with loan players is that when it's going well, it's brilliant. And when it isn't, I think it's an easy one just to look elsewhere and think: 'Well, I might be back at my parent club pretty soon and I can just get on with my career'. So that doesn't really help us either.”

Defeat to Forest, which gave their rivals’ survival hopes a real boost, also exposed some familiar failings for United. “We're talking about old things, old frailties that hurt us,” Wilder admitted. “The lack of athleticism, the lack of physical power. Players were out on their feet near the end.

“Is it conditioning? Yes, and from a mentality point of view as well. The amount of times that's happened to this particular group, where they go from a really good place to a really bad place pretty quickly.”