Sheffield United: Boss reveals what truly makes Wolves' Morgan Gibbs-White great
and live on Freeview channel 276
The on-loan midfielder scored his seventh and eighth goals of the season as Swansea City were thrashed 4-0 at Bramall Lane, lifting the hosts to sixth in the table and extending their unbeaten run to eight ahead of Wednesday’s game against Blackburn Rovers.
With all but one of those strikes coming since he arrived from Wolverhampton Wanderers six months ago, Gibbs-White’s return to fitness following injury has raised hopes among United’s squad that promotion is now a genuine possibility despite their difficult start to the season under Slavisa Jokanovic.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdHeckingbottom, who took charge in November, acknowledged the 22-year-old “great ability” but told The Star: “We all know he’s got it, we all know that. But the reason I’m comfortable talking about Morgan is because he works hard. If Morgan doesn’t work hard, then the whole thing doesn’t work because a good team will beat good individuals every day of the week.
“The moment someone doesn’t do that, show that work ethic, then they become a liability. Morgan gets that and the fact he does, for me, is much more important than all of the other really eye-catching stuff he does.”
Only captain Billy Sharp, who was also on target during the filleting of Swansea, has scored or created more goals for United this term. Gibbs-White returned to Wolves for treatment on the knee problem he sustained during December’s win over Fulham at Craven Cottage - making his return to action when West Bromwich Albion were beaten earlier this month.
Confirming that Gibbs-White had been instrumental in persuading Wolves not to exercise a recall clause they had inserted into the deal which saw him join United, Heckingbottom said: “If Morgan, or anyone else for that matter, isn’t prepared to work for the rest of the group then they don’t play. They know that, it’s simple. But these lads do work for each other, because they have that in them. They want to do it and they know how important it is.”