Sheffield United loanee Conor Hourihane has expressed his desire to remain at Bramall Lane on a permanent basis.

The Irishman, who has 30 caps for his country, joined on a season-long loan deal from Aston Villa back in August, and he has subsequently gone on to make 28 appearances in all competitions for the Blades. While he hasn’t been completely happy with his game time during his spell at the Yorkshire club, Hourihane said he would consider staying:

“I’m open to it, to whatever comes my way. I’ve enjoyed my season here. I have known Hecky from previous, I’m very fond of him as a person and as a manager so we’ll just wait and see.”

“It’s been an up and down season for myself, I didn’t play as much at the start, played a bit when Hecky took over and haven’t played as much as I would have liked recently. But over the course of the season I feel like I’ve contributed and enjoyed it so I’m definitely open to things.”

Hourihane has been in and out of the side under both Slavisa Jokanovic and Paul Heckingbottom this season, but he did score an important goal last time out, sealing a 3-1 win over QPR that cemented their position in the playoffs.

Although they could still lose their last game of the season and remain in the top six, Hourihane and his teammates will want to keep things in their own hands. A win against Fulham will guarantee there won’t be any final day drama for them.