Danny Lafferty is out of our league: insists Derry City manager

The Premiership-bound Blades announced on Wednesday that Lafferty was one of several players to be released from the club.

He was on loan at League One Peterborough this season having made just the one substitute appearance for Sheffield United against Aston Villa.

And while the player is understood to be hoping to secure a move to a club in close proximity to Sheffield where he and his family are based, Devine felt it was 'disrespectful' on Lafferty to link him with a return to the League of Ireland.

"Danny Lafferty is out of our league," said Devine. "Danny's a full international with a lot of years left in England as far as I'm concerned.

"He was a brilliant player for this football club. You're talking about getting released from a team that's in the Premier League so it's a bit disrespectful to Danny to automatically think he's going to come home.

"Danny is a wonderful players and a wonderful professional and he still has a few years left in England in my opinion playing from Championship level down."