Sheffield United facing Ben Brereton Diaz blow as Ipswich Town & Southampton keen on transfer | OneFootball

The Blades have been dealt a significant blow in their pursuit of the Villarreal forward

Sheffield United have been handed a significant dent to their pursuit of Villarreal's Ben Brereton Diaz.

According to Darren Witcoop on X, Premier League newcomers Ipswich Town and Southampton are both interested in signing the Chile international this summer.

Brereton Diaz spent the second half of last season on loan at Bramall Lane, where he impressed by weighing in with six goals despite the Blades' misfortunes.

Chris Wilder's United are now heading back to the Championship after only accumulating 16 points in a disastrous campaign that saw them amass a goal difference of -69, win just three times and finish a whopping 16 points away from 17th-placed Nottingham Forest.

Ipswich Town and Southampton, on the other hand, both enjoyed memorable campaigns by securing Premier League football next term through automatic and play-off promotion respectively, with the Tractor Boys in particular upsetting the odds to move up a division twice in as many seasons.

Now, the duo have usurped United in more ways than one.

Ipswich and Southampton join race with Sheffield United for Villarreal's Ben Brereton Diaz

Witcoop claims that Brereton Diaz is keen on a return to the Premier League, which he has every right to be given his recent exploits in South Yorkshire.

The frontman's move to United came about owing to his peripherial status in Spain since signing for Villarreal from Blackburn Rovers last summer, with the likes of Gerard Moreno, Jose Morales, Goncalo Guedes and 23-goal forward Alexander Sorloth all being firmly ahead of Brereton Diaz in Marcelino Garcia's thinking.

Brereton Diaz's switch to the Blades was preceded by 14 appearances in LaLiga, but just two of them were starts which underlines his lowly position in the pecking order at Villarreal.

Sheffield United were reportedly told earlier in the summer that £6 million was what it would take to land Brereton Diaz, but with Ipswich and Southampton now monitoring the 25-year-old's situation, it could be a case of the Blades being at the back of the queue.

Sheffield United need to look elsewhere amid Ipswich and Southampton's Ben Brereton Diaz transfer interest

It's always healthy to show ambition in the transfer market, but United run the risk of finding themselves driving towards a dead-end with Brereton Diaz.

He's simply not going to join a Championship side after performing so well in the Premier League under extremely harnessing circumstances, especially not when he can quite easily return to the top-flight.

Dozens of players all across Europe this summer will no doubt be captivated by Kieran McKenna's progressive project at Portman Road, while Russell Martin deploys a more fluid, ball-to-feet approach than United will do in the Championship under Wilder's rigid and direct tactical tuition.

They're both styles - and clubs for that matter, which will serve as much more of a benefit to Brereton Diaz than moving back to United, as will be maintaining his status as a top-flight player.

Away from solely his personal rationale, it's also unlikely that United would be able to match Villarreal's asking price - which currently remains unclear given that Ipswich and Southampton both now possess Premier League budgets which extend to both transfer fees and wages and the Blades are financially restricted amid ongoing takeover talk.