Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
I tipped the Blades to go down.. but modern-thinking Chris Wilder has worked a miracle
CHRIS WILDER will be a front runner to be manager of the year if he leads Sheffield United into Europe from his humble empire in a potting shed.
Jurgen Klopp will surely take the gong – but for me, Wilder comes a close second. And no one else is anywhere near.
That’s a big statement in a season where Klopp is on course to lead Liverpool to the title by a record margin.
But from the modest facility at their Shirecliffe training ground, a former working men’s club which is little more than a glorified hut, something special is going on at Sheffield United.
I had the privilege of visiting the Blades’ base this week and, with respect, at first glance it does not look like a fortress or the source of one of English football’s great feelgood stories.
Before a ball was kicked last August, I tipped them to go down because I didn’t think they would score enough goals to survive in the top flight.
Not only was I wrong – and I am happy to admit it – but if they beat Bournemouth tomorrow, Wilder’s side will move to within two points of fourth-placed Chelsea and the Champions League slots.
How mad is that?
Wilder is presiding over a football miracle. He won promotion to the Premier League on the seventh-lowest budget in the Championship last season, and now they are knocking on the door of Europe.
Damned with faint praise about playing basic, direct football, under an old-school ‘dinosaur’ manager, they have made a lot of people eat their words.
Unlike certain pundits who are too stubborn to change their minds, Wilder is an old-school coach who has moved with the times.
He still puts his players through running drills, to make sure they “sleep well” and the intensity of his training sessions is a real eye-opener.
When the weather is cold, sometimes they have to put training back a few hours because the pitches are frozen and there’s no undersoil heating.
They have a forward, David Mcgoldrick, who has yet to score for the club this season. But he is such a selfless team player, who runs the hard yards in the channels, that he has become a crucial component of Wilder’s side.
They have overlapping centre-backs, a goalkeeper who has deservedly forced his way into the England squad and a team spirit, a camaraderie, that transcends technical ability.
On Wilder’s watch, everything the Blades do is position-based. They practise formations and team shape religiously – so when his centre-backs overload the flanks, midfielders know when to drop in and cover the space.
The atmosphere he has generated among his staff, and at the club as a whole, is second to none.
I know he has just smashed the club’s transfer record to sign £22million Norway midfielder Sander Berge, but in general Wilder has been careful with the club’s money.
He saw Fulham get relegated after spending £120m on new players, and
Aston Villa are in danger of going the same way – but Wilder has kept 10 of the players who won promotion from League One as champions.
He trusts them – and in return, the players trust his methods and there are no big-time Charlies in his squad.
I found that Wilder (above) treats his job as a privilege and goes about it with the same enthusiasm as the 22-year-old who took his first steps in management by coaching his mates in a Sunday league team who played at the same place where Sheffield United train now.
I found a manager who doesn’t mind losing football matches as long as his team gives it their best shot.
And I found a manager who takes satisfaction not just from his team’s results this season – but the way they have achieved them by sticking to his philosophy.
The Sheffield United story is a fascinating tribute to Wilder’s management and his coaches Alan Knill and Darren Ward, and this season they have staged a masterclass in proving people wrong.
A top-10 finish would be a fantastic achievement. Top eight would be mind-blowing.
And if Chris Wilder takes Sheffield United into Europe, it would be one the greatest achievements in the Premier League era.