Can Chris Wilder survive Sheffield United’s poor start?

18/12/20 2328

On Thursday night, Sheffield United suffered a 3-2 home defeat against Manchester United at Bramall Lane. The way that the Blades have performed of late and considering their opposition the defeat may not have come as a massive shock.

Some will take the positives from the fact that they started the game in a much more Sheffield United-like style.

However, the fact remains that Chris Wilder’s team have still picked up just one point from their 13 top-flight matches this season.

Many other clubs would have sacked Wilder by now if their team had produced such poor results. The recent example was West Brom parting with head coach Slaven Bilic and replacing him with Sam Allardyce on Wednesday.

Wilder’s saving grace is the fantastic job he has done before this season. The local boy come good guided the Blades back to the promised land of the Premier League.

The Yorkshire outfit also impressed last season, winning many plaudits and finishing just short of the European places.

Those better days were only a few months ago, but it must feel like an ago for Wilder and his players. The former Northampton boss needs to perform a footballing miracle of epic proportions if the Blades are going to survive the drop this season.

Wilder has been lauded for his innovative tactics and nous. He will need all that tactical nous if he is to get the Blades out of their current situation. That is of course if they stick with him.

It will be interesting to see if the Yorkshire outfit stick by their boss. Most clubs would panic at this stage. However, the Blades and Wilder have a special affinity.

Whether that affinity will prove enough remains to be seen. However, what is for sure is that Sheffield United are in big trouble this season.