Lampard sees what money can’t buy you

FRANK LAMPARD and Chris Wilder stood on the touchline separated by just a few yards at Bramall Lane.

Managers in the same division, but worlds apart.

Chelsea’s Lampard (below) has all the resources any manager would want – money, world-class stars... and more of both on the way.

But Wilder has a far more precious gift that riches just can’t buy – a group of Sheffield United players with an honest work ethic and identity that burns bright.

None sparkled more than two-goal striker David McGoldrick in a startling victory – but every one of Wilder’s stars were heroes in a match that showcased their talents.

There isn’t a recognisable big name in United’s line-up – but they’ve got some of the biggest and strongest characters in the Premier League.

Players who will run until it hurts. Players who put their bodies on the line to bridge the class gap.

But most of all a team in the mirror image of their boss, teeming with Yorkshire grit, a hunger to beat the odds and cause trepidation when visiting sides step on to their patch.

And the Blades certainly left their mark on Champions Leaguechasing Chelsea, claiming another big scalp just 10 days after giving Jose Mourinho and his Tottenham stars a bloody nose.

This was a Blues team full of expensive stars with a pedigree Wilder’s men couldn’t match, mixed in with youngsters like Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Reece James who are already being tipped for England careers.

It didn’t matter to the Blades, for Wilder and his stars know the bigger they come the harder they fall – and this was a bad day at the office for Lampard and Co.

The starting point for many teams is earning the right to win.

That means total commitment from the first whistle, and yesterday Wilder’s Band of

Brothers showed exactly why they have the respect of every team in the top flight.

Their high-energy press had the visitors on the back foot from the start, serving notice of the kind of game Lampard’s men were facing.

Most teams couldn’t keep that up but the Blades didn’t need to as they switched to other talents like nicking goals and defending like demons.

Yet it’s too simplistic to say this Sheffield side are all about huff and puff, good organisation and marginal gains. They can mix it every which way – and that’s why their Euro dream is back on track after a postlockdown stumble.

They can play football, attack with venom and defend with Sheffield steellike authority.

The season has been dominated by Liverpool’s charge to the title, and no doubt Jurgen Klopp will be PL manager of the year, but Wilder’s contribution cannot be dismissed. As much as Klopp’s Reds help captivate a foreign audience for the Premier League that runs into billions, Wilder and his team play an equally vital role in giving the division its unique edge.

After three defeats and a draw in the games after lockdown, the wheels looked to be coming off the Blades’ season.

But home wins over Tottenham and Wolves gave Wilder’s men the platform to ruffle feathers.

They did more than that. They rolled Chelsea over with two wellworked first-half goals from McGoldrick and Oli McBurnie.

Then they defended for their lives, with McGoldrick grabbing his second goal on 77 minutes against the run of play.

Substitute Lys Mousset should have made it 4-0 with a late breakaway, but by then the damage to Chelsea was well and truly done.

And with final league games to come against Liverpool and Wolves – Chelsea’s Champions League chances are on a knife edge now.