LOSING WARNOCK WAS WILD, THIS IS

Paddy Kenny insists the Blades are making the same mistake they made in 2007 and could now face years in the wilderness

PADDY KENNY says Sheffield United are making the same mistake now with Chris Wilder that they did with Neil Warnock in 2007.

United let Warnock quit after they were last relegated from the Premier League 14 years ago.

Kenny (right) was part of that team at Bramall Lane and says they paid for their error, spending the next 12 years out of the top flight, including six in League One.

And the former Blades goalkeeper fears United face another spell in the wilderness when they are relegated from the Premier League because Wilder was also a perfect fit at Bramall Lane.

He said: “Only time will tell, but that’s exactly how it’s looking.

“When we got relegated in horrible circumstances when we lost the last game of the season to Wigan, if you’d asked, ‘Who do you want in charge next season?’ you would have said Neil Warnock.

“Now if you ask that question you would want Chris Wilder to give you the best chance of coming straight back up.

“I don’t think it was a good move when Warnock left and the club went on a massive decline.

“It needed Chris taking over five years ago to get them back and I fear what will happen now.”

The Blades have a poor record in replacing managers who have taken them to the top flight.

Bryan Robson was sacked within nine months of taking over from Warnock. It also did not work out when they sacked Ken Furphy in 1975 and when Dave Bassett quit in 1995. The board’s mistakes led to long exiles from the top level.

Kenny, who spent eight years at Bramall Lane, says owner Prince Abdullah must get Wilder’s successor right.

“Definitely, you saw that when we got relegated all those years ago,” he said. “They need to make the right appointment.” The new man will have to be more flexible than Wilder and his insistence on maintaining control over all football matters was one of the reasons why his relationship with the board broke down.

Wilder wanted to retain the bulk of his squad for next season to boost their chances of bouncing straight back up, while adding a couple more players.

The board disagreed and feel they need to cash in on assets like John Egan and Sander Berge to reduce costs.

They also wanted to review their recruitment strategy because they did not feel Wilder delivered value for money, despite being given over £100million to spend following

promotion in 2019. The final straw for Wilder came in January when the board blocked his transfer requests and he had wanted at least two more players, including Jesse Lingard.

He was also dismayed by the delays to the redevelopment of their out-dated training ground and saw both as a lack of support for him.

Wilder’s departure became inevitable with so much tension between the sides and Kenny feels both sides are the losers.

“Chris will be gutted it’s come to this because he’s Sheffield United through and through,” he said. “The club too have lost out and he was perfect for them.”