Michael Cooper justifies Sheffield United decision amid Everton transfer links
By his own admission, Michael Cooper’s career was placed on “standby” for a period of time after two serious injuries while he was at Plymouth Argyle - which is why the prospect of warming the bench at Everton does not hold much appeal. The goalkeeper’s outstanding first season at Sheffield United has led to inevitable speculation about a potential move away.
The Toffees were the first to be linked over the weekend, with Cooper reportedly eyed as a back-up to Jordan Pickford by the top-flight club. United are in a strong bargaining position anyway, with their No.1 goalkeeper just a year into his deal at Bramall Lane, but swapping first-team football to be an understudy elsewhere is not high on Cooper’s list of priorities.
That doesn’t mean that a more appealing proposition will not materialise this summer, after United’s defeat in the play-off final left them a little vulnerable in terms of approaches for their prized assets. Every player in world football has their value, a point at which the money on the table is difficult to turn down.
But Cooper is settled in Sheffield after his summer move from boyhood club Plymouth. He is respectful of the opportunity United provided him, to shine in a promotion-chasing team. And, potentially most importantly, after the frustration of his knee-related injury absences at Argyle, is keen to play.
Asked recently if he felt his career was on fast-forward over the last year or so, Cooper replied: “A little bit, yeah. I mean, it was on standby for quite a while when I had a couple of injuries. So to be back playing and staying consistent with it has been great for me. I've really enjoyed my football again, yeah.
“At Plymouth, when we were going for League One titles and 100 points and staying up on the last game of season, I think it's equally as big in its own right. I think this is just a different type of pressure and environment. But I feel like I've fitted in really well.”
Cooper has impressed coaching staff, teammates and arguably most importantly supporters with his consistent displays since making the bargain move from Devon last summer. His calmness is a big feature of his game, borne from a laid-back personality away from the pitch, while his penchant for eye-catching saves in big moments has caught the attention of admirers elsewhere.
It spoke volumes about Cooper’s impact last season that, in a side that finished third in the division with 92 points, their goalkeeper was voted player of the year by the club’s supporters. The humble Cooper was shocked to receive the award, but few could argue it wasn’t well deserved.
Michael Cooper justifies Sheffield United decision amid Everton transfer links
“I get lost for words a little bit when people ask me how it felt, and so on,” he admitted. “It’s just so hard to describe and explain because, as a goalie, you don't really expect personal accolades like that. So for the fan base to vote me as their player of the year, it means so much and I’m just so grateful for it.”
Like all players at United and elsewhere, Cooper is aspirational and ambitious and has dreamed of being England’s No.1 goalkeeper in the future, even if his focus remains very much on the here and now. He still has time on his side, not turning 26 until October, and even if international ambitions did factor into his thinking regarding his future, playing in the Championship does not seem to be the barrier it once was.
James Trafford, the Burnley goalkeeper, earned an England call-up while Burnley were still in the second tier, although their promotion to the Premier League will give him a wider audience while Cooper prepares for another season at Championship level with the Blades.
“Every young aspiring goalie wants to be England's No.1, and it's no different for me and other goalies in the country at the minute,” Cooper admitted earlier in the season. “But my focus is short-term and what's happening at Sheffield United. I’m not looking any further into the future than right now.
“Traff's done well and got into the [England] squad so he's showed you don't have to be in the Premier League. The standard in the Championship has increased massively recently so it gives outfield players and goalies a chance as well of maybe getting on the fringes of the squads.
Sheffield United move helped Michael Cooper burst Plymouth ‘bubble’
“When you’re at a club for so long, you can be in a little bubble almost. So the different challenges [at United] has helped bring the best out of me, I think. I'm just trying to further my career and so far I feel it's going in that direction.”
Asked what had persuaded him that United was the right move to further his career, Cooper admitted: “It was the lure of the history, the size, the fanbase, what the manager had to offer. The rebuild in the summer, the whole project and the way the club was sold ... it was something that I couldn't turn down.
“And looking back I'm pretty sure I made the right decision. Leaving Plymouth was never an easy decision. It took a lot of thinking - more than I think people perhaps realise - but I think it's paid off.”
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