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Sheffield United have one ambition for the 2025/26 season, and that is to win promotion back to the Premier League automatically after narrowly missing out at Wembley in May.
It’s been nearly three weeks since Tommy Watson secured promotion for Sunderland in the Championship play-off final, and Chris Wilder has already been scouting the transfer market for new arrivals following that bitter disappointment.
Jimmy Dunne is closing in on a move to the Blades with his contract at QPR set to come to an end this summer, but first-choice goalkeeper Michael Cooper is the subject of interest from Everton, and this is a vital moment for the South Yorkshire outfit.
However, as rivals Sheffield Wednesday are placed under a transfer embargo, the Blades have made their first signing of the summer, using a transfer model that has not had a lot of success just yet.
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Sheffield United fans react as Ehije Ukaki joins
Back in January, the Blades started to use a new AI-driven data model to help pick out the best players to join the club with Christian Nwachukwu one of those to make their way to Bramall Lane from Bulgarian side Botev Plovdiv.
Nwachukwu will now be joined by one of his former teammates, with Ehije Ukaki now in S2, but Sheffield United supporters are very split on this.
A second Blades fan wrote: “This AI scouting system will either turn us into Brighton or we will be in League Two come 2030.”
“Up the AI Blades,” another said.
A fifth Sheffield United supporter simply wrote: “AI FC.”
Before another joked: “I hope AI picks me next.”
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Questions have to be asked if Ehije Ukaki’s addition fails
Ukaki is the third Sheffield United signing from this new AI model, but both Jefferson Caceres and Christian Nwachukwu have failed to play a single minute of football for the Championship side since joining.
With the winger now signed, Wilder must bring him into the team next season and a full pre-season schedule will help him get adjusted to life as a Blade.
However, if this deal does not play out as expected, then there will be huge question marks over the long-term validity of the way Sheffield United are now bringing in players as they quickly need success in a wide-open race for the Championship title in 2025/26.