McCallum, then 19, initially joined the Canaries in a £3.5m swoop from Coventry City in January 2020, agreeing a four-and-a-half year contract before immediately embarking on two loan spells back to the West Midlands.
He appeared in 52 league outings for Norwich, all of which came in his final two seasons under contract with the club.
McCallum played a bit-part role in Norwich’s run to the Championship play-off semi-finals – which was curtailed in a humiliating 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Leeds United – by making 29 appearances, 16 of which were starts amid competition from fellow out-of-contract left-back Dimitros Giannoulis.
However, with both parties failing to strike fresh terms, it’s now believed that the 23-year-old is set to arrive as Chris Wilder’s first signing of the summer transfer window, with the Blades also closing in on a deal for Leeds United’s Jamie Shackleton.
Norwich City’s Sam McCallum had been of interest to other Championship clubs
McCallum was expected to move to Stoke City, owned by Steven Schumacher, but the South Yorkshire team had to overcome strong opposition to get him to Brammall Lane.
Given their ongoing acquisition talks, there had been some initial reservations about United’s capacity to facilitate a trade, but McCallum’s presence as a free agent helps them.
Zeke Downes, a Football League World analyst, is a Canaries fan, but this move has left him with more questions than answers.
Zeke said Football League World, “I was thinking that McCallum would be signing for Stoke, that’s what it looked like anyway.”
“I’m not sure how it ended up at Sheffield United, but given that I believe they are struggling, it might be a hazardous move.
I think it’s a fantastic move for them, but I’m not sure it’s a good move for him. “I can see them losing their main players and they’ve not really got the squad, especially compared to other teams in the league.”
Norwich City will be frustrated to lose Sam McCallum on a free transfer to Sheffield United
Supporters will be disappointed to lose McCallum for nothing even though there is a perception that he didn’t live up to the hype at Carrow Road; this frustration will be compounded by the fact that Giannoulis is going through the same thing.
Undoubtedly, Norwich needs to bounce back from losing two players who play the same position for no charge at the same time if they hope to contend for promotion to the Premier League the next season.
Though, realistically, they should have little trouble finding suitable replacements for the two, McCallum in particular was a valuable squad member who, considering his age and profile, should have fetched a reasonable price.
Given that Wilder needs dynamic attacking width from his wing-backs, which McCallum can provide in plenty, his profile may well help United, possibly at the price of Norwich.
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