When Oliver Norwood left Manchester United in 2012, Sir Alex Ferguson made a prediction that the now Sheffield United midfielder thought might never come true. “You’ll play in the Premier League one day,” said the legendary former United manager, who tried to soften the blow for Norwood, who was leaving Old Trafford without a senior appearance to his name.
It looked for many years as though Ferguson would be wrong. Twice Norwood helped a club achieve promotion from the Championship and twice he was then sent back to the second tier; first with Brighton and then with Fulham, before joining Sheffield United.
Chris Wilder admitted in the summer it would have been “cruel” to deny the 28-year-old a shot at the big time with the Blades.