Sheffield United have been dealt a major blow in their bid to keep George Baldock at Bramall Lane this summer.

What's the talk?

That's according to a report by the Daily Mail, who claim that Olympiakos and Burnley have joined Celtic in the race for the right-back in the summer transfer window.

It is claimed that the Scottish side are keen to take the 28-year-old on a temporary basis, however, Slavisa Jokanovic would not be open to anything other than sanctioning the permanent sale of the defender this summer, with it being reported that the Blades' are demanding a fee of around £8m in order to part with Baldock.

However, the report finishes by stating that, following the latest interest in his services, the future of the right-back appears rather uncertain heading into the final weeks of the summer market.

Jokanovic will be fuming

With it looking as if Celtic's pursuit of Baldock had hit something of a dead-end, and subsequently Sheffield United's chances of retaining the services of the defender for their 2021/22 Championship campaign increasing, the new interest from Olympiakos and Burnley is sure to have left the 52-year-old manager fuming.

Despite a disappointing season last time out, Baldock nevertheless proved the previous year that he is an extremely important player within the United team.

Indeed, over his 38 Premier League appearances back in 2019/20, the £4.5m-rated right-back made an average of 0.9 interceptions, 1.6 tackles, 1.8 clearances and won 4.9 duels per game.

He also impressed in an attacking capacity, scoring two goals, registering three assists and creating two big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of 0.6 key passes per match.

These metrics saw the man Garth Crooks dubbed a "superb" player earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.83, ranking him as the Baldes' joint 11th-best performer in the top flight of English football that season.

As such, it would very much seem as if the £26k-per-week Baldock remaining at Bramall Lane beyond the transfer deadline at the end of the month would indeed significantly improve the club's chances of going on to secure an immediate return to the Premier League at the first time of asking, while his sale could well see the wheels fall off United's promotion push before it has even really begun.

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