Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom admits their academy will always be exposed to losing their best prospects.

Kylan Midwood and Will Lankshear have left for Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur respectively over the past year.

"We've made big strides with that but there's still other things we need to do off the pitch," Heckingbottom said. “We've lost players we didn't want to lose, in terms of younger players. We did well for the future of the club in terms of getting to the Premier League and getting that security there.

“But in terms of building now, there's big commitment to getting the new revenue streams going in terms of the hotel and the new training facility which will enable us to go category one and protect our good young assets.

"And then, only then, are we in a position to start delivering on those long-term things."