Oliver Norwood moves to Sheffield United

Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Oliver Norwood has joined Championship side Sheffield United on-loan.

The deal will then become a permanent arrangement when the January transfer window opens with the Blades paying £2m for the services of the Northern Ireld international.

Norwood arrived at the Amex from Reading on the eve of the 2016-17 season. He was signed after original transfer target Alex Pritchard infamously decided he didn’t want to sit in traffic on the M25 on his way to sign a Brighton contract from Tottenham Hotspur, and so turned the car around and went to Norwich City instead. Pritchard’s decision of course had nothing to do with money at all.

Norwood went onto play 37 times as the Albion won promotion to the Premier League. Arguably his greatest contribution to that season was when bleaching his hair towards the end of the campaign, leaving him to be a dead-ringer for Shirley Carter from EastEnders.

He spent last season on-loan with Fulham, helping them to promotion via the play offs. Norwood played 41 times for the Cottagers but that wasn’t enough to persuade Slaviša Jokanović to make him a permanent member of his squad for their return to the Premier League.

Hull City have had at least four bids turned down by the Albion over the course of the summer, including a joint offer for both Norwood and Jiri Skalak. Skalak has since signed for Millwall.

Norwood will now be targeting a third promotion from the second tier in three seasons with his third different club. The Blades are managed by former Albion defender Chris Wilder and are one of the dark horses in a typically competitive Championship.