Adams ‘is right man’ to ensure Blades do not drop

Adams is still seeking his first victory after seven games in charge of his hometown club and the Blades are now four points adrift of safety in the relegation zone.

Montgomery, who took over as captain following the loss of defender Chris Morgan four months ago, thinks Adams has been unlucky with results so far and is adamant that the club are turning a corner in a difficult season.

“If anyone can get us out of this situation, it is Micky Adams,” said Montgomery. “The gaffer has been brilliant, he has given the lads a fresh start, and got us back to how we used to play, putting teams under the cosh. It is important that we keep playing like the manager wants us to and that will give us every chance”

Chief executive Trevor Birch also backed Adams this week after reports in the tabloid press claimed the Blades manager was only two games away from the sack.

The visit of play-off chasing Millwall to Bramall Lane on Saturday will provide a stern test of the Blades’ resolve. There were encouraging signs in recent back-to-back home games against Norwich City and Leicester City but last weekend’s 3-0 defeat at Ipswich Town was undoubtedly a setback.

“You don’t mind if you play badly and lose games – you feel disappointed and annoyed – but in the last two home games, we have not deserved to lose,” said Montgomery. “Both those clubs were flying high yet we battered them and still ended up losing.

“Right now, this is the most frustrated I have felt in my entire career,” he admitted. “But we don’t have time to feel sorry for ourselves, we need to keep doing what we know is right and things will turn.”

According to Montgomery, home supporters have not been short-changed in recent games and the midfielder is hoping to see their vocal backing maintained against the Londoners.

“The crowd is obviously right behind us because there wasn’t a boo against Leicester,” he said. “They can’t argue because every lad is giving 100 per cent and coming off the field with knocks and cuts and bruises. Decisions are just going against us instead of for us.

“It just needs the luck to start turning and maybe a couple of goalkeepers not getting man of the matches,” he added. “We have enough experience and there are 17 games left so there are still a lot of points to play for. We are all confident that we have got more than enough to climb that table.”

The Blades announced the capture of three young players from Europe last night – although the trio need time to adjust to the demands of English football and will initially work under development coach Mark Smith.

Winger Andras Gardos, 20, has moved from Hungarian club Ferencvaros (who are owned by the Blades), while midfielders Kristoffer Lokberg and Erik Tonne, both 19, have moved from Norwegian club Strindheim. The deals follow the capture last month of Australian left-back Marc Warren, 18, from Central Coast Mariners (another Blades-owned club)

Smith said: “We have identified that all four have potential and we hope that we can boost their development by working full-time at Shirecliffe. The signing of these players emphasises our long-term thinking but they are settling into Yorkshire life nicely, working hard on the training pitch, and, hopefully, they can catch the eye of Micky Adams in the future.”

Birch was keen to stress that the deals are geared towards long-term success rather than boosting the immediate fight for survival.

“Whilst we have a job to do for the first team, there is a vision as to how the club should be run and the identification of youth talent to develop is a core element,” said Birch. “Our extensive scouting has identified some of the best youth talent available. We are delighted that our international connections are providing us with quality players and allied with the promising youngsters John Pemberton is nurturing in our Academy, we hope to build a strong reserve team which will produce players capable of challenging for a first-team berth.”

The Blades’ away game at Queens Parks Rangers, originally scheduled for April 2, has been switched and will now be shown on Sky Television on Monday, April 4 (7.45).

The game will see manager Adams pitting his wits against former Blades manager Neil Warnock, now in charge at QPR.

Meanwhile, the Blades have decided to slash prices on official coaches to away games in another move which could boost the club’s survival bid. Prices for the Crystal Palace game have been reduced from £27 to £17, and from £14 to £9 for the Scunthorpe United game.

Supporters who have already purchased coach travel for these games will be able to obtain a refund for the difference.

Head of Commercial Steve Lewis said: “We have a terrific following home and away and the support and encouragement of those fans will have a big part to play in our climb up the league table. We want as many fans following us to the away grounds as possible and we hope this subsidy on travel prices will enable more supporters to back us when we take on Palace, Scunthorpe and others as we battle to turn our season around.”