Speed set for Sheffield United appointment

United parted company with Kevin Blackwell after Saturday's 3-0 home defeat to QPR - managed by their former manager Neil Warnock - and Speed, who has been working as first-team coach, will be handed his first job as manager.

The 40-year-old is understood to have met yesterday with club chairman Kevin McCabe and chief executive Trevor Birch in Spain, where he was offered the role. Former Leeds and Luton manager Blackwell, who had worked as assistant to Warnock at various clubs for 12 years, three of them at Bramall Lane before taking up a senior coaching role at Elland Road in 2003, still had two years left on his contract.

The 51-year-old was installed as United manager in February 2008 following the sacking of Bryan Robson, but after leading them to the play-off final in 2009 - they lost out to Burnley - he has found himself under increasing pressure after his failure to mount a promotion challenge last season.

Former Leeds, Everton, Newcastle and Bolton midfielder Speed, who held the record of most Barclays Premier League appearances, 535, before being overtaken by David James and Ryan Giggs, joined the club initially as a player for 250,000 from Bolton on January 1, 2008. Speed made 38 appearances for United, but his playing days were curtailed by a persistent back injury and he has since focused on his coaching duties.

Swansea were keen for Speed to replace Paulo Sousa as manager earlier this summer, but the Welsh club were refused permission to speak to him by United, for whom the former Wales international is still registered as a player.