Player Profile
On the day Tyrese Campbell left Stoke City last summer, then-manager Steven Schumacher said the striker needed a fresh start.
“Tyrese has been here for a long time but probably hasn’t hit the heights of what his potential could be,” said Schumacher, who had opted against offering the 25-year-old a new contract.
“He needs to go somewhere where he can play every week, play in a system that suits him and maybe fulfil some of that potential.”
Little did he realise just how prescient those words would prove.
SHOOTING STAR: Tyrese Campbell has recaptured his best form with Sheffield United
PICTURE: Alamy
Admiration
Ten months on, Campbell is the spearhead of Sheffield United’s frontline, his nine Championship goals fuelling a push for the Premier League and earning the admiration of a Blades legend.
“Tyrese is an old-fashioned type of player,” said Brian Deane, who scored over 100 times in three spells at Bramall Lane.
“He has that physical aspect to him with decent pace and good ability.
“You can tell he’s an athlete, but he’s well-built as well.
“As he matures and develops, he could do a really good job.”
Qualities
Those qualities were evident from an early age during Campbell’s emergence at Manchester City and then Stoke.
The son of late Arsenal forward Kevin Campbell, he scored prolifically at youth level and made his Premier League debut as an 18-year-old shortly before Stoke’s relegation to the Championship in 2018.
“Age doesn’t concern me,” said his manager Paul Lambert, who personally blocked a loan move in order to keep Campbell in the first-team picture.
“I only care about ability, and he’s good enough.”
Injury
An impressive 15-game spell on loan at Shrewsbury Town, followed by a return of nine Championship goals in 37 games for Stoke in 2019-20, only served to fuel barrelling expectations.
Yet as Schumacher rightly said, they were not met.
A serious knee injury sustained in late 2020 kept Campbell out for ten months and robbed the striker of all the confidence and momentum he’d built over the previous year.
Upon his return, constant niggles and fitness issues were compounded by what has now become a chronic level of managerial churn in the Potteries.
In his six Championship seasons at the bet365 Stadium, Campbell worked under five different managers and played in a variety of systems.
He was not the only player to struggle, and eventually left with a modest record of 36 goals in 164 appearances in all competitions.
What nobody at Stoke ever doubted – including Schumacher – was Campbell’s quality, both as a clinical finisher and an all-round centre-forward.
The concern was his ability to remain injury-free and Chris Wilder, sensing an opportunity, took a punt.
Despite Campbell missing seven games over Christmas with a hamstring problem, it is one that has emphatically paid off.
Efficiency
Campbell is United’s top scorer (January signing Tom Cannon scored his goals for Stoke), and an additional assist means he also has more direct goal contributions than any other player in the Blades squad.
As his pivotal role in Rhian Brewster’s winner over Sheffield Wednesday last weekend illustrated, he is also contributing more widely by running channels and winning duels, with no forward in the Championship having created more goals (0.22 per 90 minutes) from a take-on.
Equally impressive is the accuracy of Campbell’s finishing.
Compared to other Championship strikers, he is top of the pile for shots on target per 90 minutes, with 54 per cent of his efforts either finding the net or testing the goalkeeper.
This efficiency can also be seen in a conversion rate of 24 per cent, similar to Norwich City goal machine Josh Sargent – a player who Campbell actually beats on goals per 90 minutes.
Potential
Earlier this season, Wilder spoke of Campbell’s potential. “We’re convinced there’s a player in there,” he said.
That player has now emerged and looks every inch a Championship striker.
What’s more, Campbell’s impressive shooting stats and physical profile suggest he has the potential to perform in the Premier League, not least because he is a player who has the capacity to create chances for himself.
If Campbell can maintain his form and – crucially – stay injury free, he could yet prove to be the signing of the season.
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