CRACKER JACK
...but Villa are no one-man team warns Wilder
CHRIS WILDER claims it is disrespectful to brand Aston Villa a one-man team.
Jack Grealish has starred for them on their return to the Premier League, scoring six goals and providing four assists.
Wilder loves Grealish’s retro style, but says it is unfair on boss Dean Smith and the rest of the Villa squad to single him out for praise.
“It’s disrespectful to Dean and his team to just look at Grealish,” said the Sheffield United boss (right).
“Jack is a fantastic player and the heartbeat of their team. He’s key to them and we will have to defend well against him and wrap him up.
“I can relate to Jack because he’s a likeable character who wears his heart on his sleeve. I was delighted for him when they won promotion because I knew what it meant to him.
“But they got out of the Championship with a good group – John McGinn, Conor Hourihane, Tyrone Mings.
“They then added to that with the likes of Matt Targett and a good goalkeeper in Tom Heaton. They’ve spent at the top of the pitch too – Jonathan Kodjia is only on the bench. They’re a really good team and we will have to make sure we play as well against them as we did at Norwich.”
The Blades conceded three goals in the last eight minutes to draw 3-3 when the sides last met in February as they battled for promotion to the Premier League.
As harrowing as that night was, Wilder claims it was a defining moment in their promotion push because they went on to win 10 and draw four of their last 15 games.
“It was an interesting 25 minutes in the changing room afterwards,” said Wilder. “I stepped in for about 15 of them and it was quite lively.
“But the players care and they did what they needed to do. They didn’t go over the top, although words were said between them.
“It was an outstanding performance for us for 85 minutes and to draw after being 3-0 up was difficult to take. But their reaction was first class and we used that as a springboard for another decent run, which ultimately gained us promotion.”