Sheffield United defender to leave the club in the summer

Originally posted on Sheff United Way | By Jake Staniland | Last updated 5/5/24

According to Inside Futbol, Sheffield United right-back George Baldock has signed a pre-agreement with Greek club Panathinaikos ahead of the expiration of his current Blades deal.

The 31-year-old has spent seven fruitful years at Bramall Lane in which he has seen two automatic promotions to the Premier League and was part of the 2019/20 team that outstandingly finished 9th in the Premier League.

Baldock has made 219 appearances for Sheffield United and he may not get the chance to add to that as he remains sidelined with a soft tissue injury which has kept him out for the majority of the campaign.

The report from Inside Futbol claims the Greek international has penned a three-year deal with the Greens. Panathinaikos are currently 3rd in the Greek Super League and have a chance of qualifying for the UEFA Europa Conference League for next season.

Moving to Panathinaikos marks a new chapter for Baldock, who already boasts experience outside English football with a loan spell in Iceland during his tenure at MK Dons. Having earned a call-up to the Greek national team in 2022, Baldock has since represented his adopted nation on twelve occasions.

His upcoming venture into the Greek top flight promises to further enrich his footballing journey, offering him the opportunity to showcase his talents in a new environment for the first time since 2017.

George Baldock to leave Sheffield United this summer and join Panathinaikos

It shouldn’t really come as a surprise that Baldock is leaving the Blades to join a team in Greece. He has cemented himself in the history books at United and he will be fondly remembered for his excellent work rate and will to win.

At 31 years of age this move seems like the right thing to do; he can get a crack at playing European football as well as putting himself on display to try and rack up some more caps for the Greek national team.

Meanwhile for Sheffield United they will undoubtedly miss his leadership qualities. But, it is hard to find a reason to renew an ageing top earners contract off the back of an unfortunate injury-riddled campaign.

The Blades linked with Leeds United right-back Luke Ayling

The Blades have seemingly already been in the shop window looking at right-backs, with the club being linked with 32-year-old Luke Ayling, who’s contract with Leeds United is set to expire this summer.

Ayling has been on loan at Middlesbrough since January and he has been in awesome form for Michael Carrick’s team. In 19 appearances for the Boro he has racked up eight assists.

Understandably after such a successful campaign it is Middlesbrough who are supposedly the favourites to sign Ayling.

This article first appeared on Sheff United Way and was syndicated with permission.

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