Sheffield United have struck gold with £2m transfer | OneFootball

Michael Cooper has proven a steal for £2 million.

Sheffield United once again have that virtue of consistency about them as they seem set for another tilt at promotion from the Championship.

Currently, Chris Wilder's side are sitting in first place, having recorded 12 wins from their opening 18 games in the division. This leaves them three points clear of third place Leeds United, who will be desperate to resurrect last year's problems after narrowly missing out on the top two.

However, this won't prove simple with the Blades and Burnley both on a superb run of form.

Wilder's men have been defensively solid, but it is their goalkeeper, Michael Cooper, whose performances have truly caught the eye.

Signed from Plymouth Argyle in the summer for an initial £2 million, the sanctioning of this transfer is looking worse on behalf of Simon Hallet every day.

The form he showed at the Pilgrims has easily been transferred to Bramall Lane, and he is beginning to appear ready to make the jump to the Premier League.

Having been part of Plymouth's academy from 2009, it was fitting that one of their own stepped up to become the first-choice goalkeeper in the 2020-21 season. While his debut campaign was not his finest, he showed enough promise to warrant continued investment and retained the number one spot heading into 2021-22.

That season, he claimed the League One Golden Glove alongside Wycombe's David Stockdale, keeping an impressive 18 clean sheets in 46 matches and conceding, on average, just one goal per game.

However, in Argyle's promotion season, he reached new heights. Despite featuring in only 29 games, his goals prevented figure stood at an impressive 7.60. This fine form carried over into the Championship, and although injuries limited him to just 19 matches, he posted a strong save percentage of 72.1% and prevented an average of 0.19 goals per game.

Unsurprisingly, this caught the eye of teams higher up the Championship and Sheffield United were rewarded for their persistent chase of Cooper as they signed him for a relatively minimal fee on the 15th August.

Cooper takes his form to new levels in Yorkshire

At 25-years-old, Cooper certainly earned his move to the Blades, having performed admirably over four years in Devon.

This season, with a solid defence in front of him, he has taken his game to new heights, leaving opposing teams facing Wilder's men wondering how they can possibly find the net.

In his 16 Championship starts, Cooper has conceded just seven goals while recording an impressive 11 clean sheets. Although Harry Souttar and the defensive line have provided excellent protection, Cooper has remained heavily involved, making 32 saves this season with an outstanding save percentage of 82.1%.

Furthermore, he has prevented 4.73 goals and delivered a crucial penalty save against Patrick Roberts in a pivotal six-pointer against Sunderland.

This level of performance has led to shouts from the Bramall Lane faithful for Cooper to be included in the England set-up, with fellow Championship keeper James Trafford often being afforded opportunities.

However, that is possibly one step too far for now and Wilder will hope that Cooper has all eyes on the task ahead at Sheffield United.

With a crucial Christmas period upcoming, a continuation of his early season form will be expected. In a few weeks he welcomes his former employers to his new home, and you can be sure that he will be desperate to put in a strong performance against Wayne Rooney's side.