Dean Henderson during Manchester United training.

Ole: Henderson benefited from Blades loans

Wednesday 16 December 2020 13:41

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes Dean Henderson’s experiences at Sheffield United have helped the goalkeeper mature and develop.

The England international spent two seasons on loan with the Blades and played a huge role as the club gained promotion from the Championship in 2018/19, before his excellent form was key in Chris Wilder’s side achieving a ninth-place finish in the Premier League last term.

Dean returned to the Reds last summer following his two-year stint at Bramall Lane, and has played five times for United this season.
Ahead of the stopper's first trip back to his former club, when the Reds take on Sheffield United on Thursday night, Ole was asked for his opinion on Dean’s time at the Blades.

“It just shows how beneficial some loan deals are,” the boss said in Wednesday’s pre-match press conference. “Of course, Dean has worked his way up through the ranks, through the system and the two years at Sheffield United has made him really come back as a more mature, quality keeper.

“He's had some experiences there with a great promotion and his year in the Premier League last season, as well, was very valuable for us and for him.
“He's made his England debut now since he's come back and I feel he is learning more and more the Man United style.”

Having played 36 matches last term for Sheffield United, Dean kept 13 clean sheets behind Wilder’s renowned back-three system.

While Ole feels our shape and structure at the Reds is slightly different, he believes the goalkeeping fundamentals learned on loan have helped the 23-year-old’s progression.

“Our play is a bit different,” he told reporters via video link. “We have a couple of different demands of him obviously, but we're very grateful to Sheffield United and Chris for giving him the chance to develop as they did.”

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