Sheffield United v Blackburn Rovers: John Egan relieved to be playing with, not against, new Blade Reda Khadra

Namely, that Reda Khadra – whether it be from the start or from the bench – will be wearing the red and white striped jersey of Sheffield United and not the shirt of opponents Blackburn.

The German endeared himself to the Ewood Park faithful with some sublime moments of quality last term. A direct, pacey player with a full repertoire of tricks, Khadra is the sort of unpredictable talent whom defenders love to hate.

Khadra certainly marked the card of Egan and everyone connected with the Blades squad by virtue of an outstanding performance in their trip across the Pennines to Ewood last autumn.

It was crowned by a marvellous equaliser when he led the visiting backline a merry dance in front of their big 5,000 travelling contingent in the Darwen End to cancel out an equally fine opener from Rhian Brewster in a 3-1 home victory.

To put it bluntly, Khadra was a proverbial pain in the backside for United’s defenders all game. It was a day when they were given a chasing, in truth.

Khadra’s contribution in the reverse fixture in late February was also eventful and fateful. He missed a penalty for Rovers having earlier being involved in an incident which saw United loanee Charlie Goode sent off for a heavy challenge.