Wilder is a big admirer of Vardy
LEICESTER City striker and Sheffield Wednesday fan Jamie Vardy will be looking to torment his boyhood club’s rivals Sheffield United tomorrow, writes Jordan Blackwell.
But despite his Owls allegiance, Vardy still has a huge admirer in Blades boss Chris Wilder.
In fact, Wilder has been defending Vardy down at his local.
“We have this Wednesday stuff which is still flying about but from a professional point of view and watching him in his career, it’s been a magnificent effort,” Wilder said on the City striker, who leads the Premier League scoring charts.
“To be released by the team you love is a hammer blow and to get up off the canvas and prove people wrong by getting his hands dirty at Stocksbridge and Halifax and Fleetwood and then Nigel (Pearson) to take a punt for a million quid was a huge statement and one that’s been justified.
“To prove himself in the Championship and in the Premier League, to become a Premier League winner, an England international, a serial goalscorer and still having the drive and determination to go right to the final breath he has a footballer, he’s an incredible example.
“I go to the pub after a win and people say: ‘I could have made it but had an injury.’
“Well, it wasn’t you because you didn’t do it. You didn’t prove it like Vardy did, so you deserve to be in the pub and have the career you had, not the one Vardy had. So shut up.
“And I’ve got a few pals like that who I have to put in their basket sometimes. He keeps going so he deserves everything that comes his way, even though it’s from a Blade to an Owl.”
Vardy netted his first goal of the season at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane in August, and an excellent run of form saw him reach double figures by November.
A downturn saw Vardy, below, go from Christmas to March without finding the net, but he’s now bagged four in his last three City outings to reach 23 for the campaign.
One more in his final three games would see him match his tally from the title-winning season. He is the leader for the Golden Boot too, and at 33, he would be the oldest winner of the accolade since 1948.