Sheffield United sweat on Manchester City midfielder ahead of South Yorkshire derby
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On-loan from Manchester City, McAtee was withdrawn midway through the fourth round tie with Paul Heckingbottom later confirming the substitution was not strategic. The 20-year-old required treatment after colliding with an opposition player as Phil Parkinson’s defence tried in vain to prevent Oli McBurnie from scoring less than two minutes into the contest. Although he was able to carry on, an assessment of McAtee’s condition prompted United’s manager to make a change for the start of the second-half with Max Lowe being introduced.
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“With James, we’ll have to see how he is,” Heckingbottom told The Star. “He was struggling with turning. It’s his ankle.”
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Hide AdRevealing that McAtee had offered to push himself through the pain barrier, Heckingbottom elected to err on the side of caution given the youngster’s growing influence at Bramall Lane. United are preparing to make the short journey to New York Stadium ranked second in the Championship table and 12 points clear of third-placed Middlesbrough. After initially struggling to adjust to the physical demands of second tier football, McAtee netted twice for United over the Christmas period. Lowe was brought on because Heckingbottom had been ordered to withdraw Sander Berge from the squad which travelled to Wrexham as his employers investigated the possibility of selling him before Tuesday’s transfer deadline. The Norway international eventually remained in South Yorkshire, after no suitable bids were received.
With United still operating under a transfer embargo imposed by the English Football League, Heckingbottom said: “He probably could have come back out but I wasn’t willing to do that and take the risk with him.”
As John Fleck continues his battle for fitness, Berge and fellow City loanee Tommy Doyle are likely to start the meeting with Rotherham if McAtee is ruled-out of action. McBurnie could partner Iliman Ndiaye in attack although captain Billy Sharp will be hoping for a recall. Both McBurnie and Ndiaye have claimed 11 goals apiece so far this season.