The owners of Sheffield United have failed to deny claims they made contact with the administrators of neighbours Sheffield Wednesday suggesting an extraordinary merger between the two Steel City rivals.

United beat a depleted Wednesday side 3-0 at Hillsborough on Sunday to leave the Owls on -4 points at the bottom of the Championship amid the most turbulent period in the club's history.

Hapless Thai tuna magnate Dejphon Chansiri was forced to put Wednesday into administration last month after failing to meet wage obligations on five of the previous seven pay days.

Administrators from insolvency practitioners Begbies Traynor are now overseeing the sale process and hope to select a preferred bidder by December 4.

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It's understood 12 parties submitted proof of funds to the tune of £50million, five of which have now submitted offers to takeover the beleaguered Championship side.

But reports on Tuesday suggested CHO Sports, the American owners of United led by businessmen Steven Rosen and Helmy Eltoukhy, had expressed interest in acquiring Wednesday and merging the two Sheffield sides.

The notion was met with incredulity from supporters of both sides on social media. United released a statement on Wednesday expressing their delight at the derby win, but failed to acknowledge the elephant in the room.

"Our 3-0 victory on Sunday in the local derby with Wednesday was definitely the boost we all needed after a tougher-than-expected start to the season," it said.

"Like you, we are obviously disappointed with our start to the season. Even more so when this season is viewed in the context of how close we were to securing promotion back to the Premier League last May.

"As the owners and custodians of the club we remain hugely confident that with your support and some targeted additions to the squad that we will soon climb up the table back to where we belong.

"But be under no illusion: bringing regular Premier League football to Sheffield United is why we are here. We are working as hard as we can to further modernise the club so that it is in the strongest position to compete."

Meanwhile, The Telegraph report former Newcastle owner Mike Ashley has submitted a bid of around £20million for the Owls. He's joined by interest from all over the globe, including from US billionaire John McEvoy.

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