Sheffield United midfielder Ismaila Coulibaly does not look likely to return to Bramall Lane this summer.

What's the talk?

According to a report by Yorkshire Live last month, the Sheffield United hierarchy were believed to have offered Slavisa Jokanovic the chance to recall the 20-year-old from his three-year loan at the Blades' sister club Beerschot V.A. after the midfielder qualified for a work permit allowing him to play in the UK sooner than originally anticipated.

However, a new report by The Athletic has claimed that the £2.7m-rated youngster looks set to remain in Belgium ahead of next season, suggesting that the Serbian has rejected the opportunity to bring Coulibaly back to the club.

Fans will be gutted

Considering just how impressive Coulibaly was for Beerschot last season, the news that the Sheffield United boss does not intend to bring the midfielder back to Bramall Lane this summer is likely to leave fans gutted.

Indeed, over his 22 Jupiler Pro League appearances for Will Still's side last term, the Mali under-20 international scored five goals, as in addition to making an average of 1.5 interceptions, 1.9 tackles and winning 4.6 duels per game.

These returns saw the midfielder earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.87, ranking him as the Belgian side's fifth-best performer in the Pro League, with his displays believed to have attracted the interest of clubs such as AC Milan and Galatasaray.

As such, when taking into account the fact that United have dropped down a division since his signing, it would seem as if the youngster would be more than capable of playing a big role in the middle of the park for Jokanovic's side in next season's Championship, with the experience he would gain in English football undoubtedly going a long way to preparing him for a potential Premier League campaign with the Blades in the future.

However, at present it appears that this is not a likely scenario, and Jokanovic will be surely be hoping that his reported call on Coulibaly does not come back to haunt him next season.

In other news: Jokanovic must sanction £10m Sheffield United summer swoop for in-demand "weapon"