Blades prove the right club at right moment for Weir

The Scot, 43, was among several candidates interviewed by Blues chairman Bill Kenwright a few weeks ago for the Goodison Park post and, despite losing out to Roberto Martinez, the process achieved something significant for him.

It convinced the former Everton reserve-team coach – whom Martinez was keen on retaining – that the time was right to step up to being No 1.

This feeling was further confirmed following talks with managerial mentor David Moyes, with whom he worked both as a player and coach at Goodison. New Manchester United boss Moyes recommended that he should take the job ‘100 per cent’.

The new Blades manager, set to announce additions to his backroom staff shortly, said: “I genuinely felt I had a decent chance at Everton. Obviously, Bill called and told us he had decided to go externally and I understood his reasons for that. But I came out of the interview knowing I was ready to be a manager.

“In the past two or three years, I have been offered jobs and had opportunities, but never really felt the time or club was right. But (after) going through the process with Everton, I felt I was ready and that was the moment I knew.”

On consulting Moyes ahead of making his decision, Weir – who had been tipped by many to join Moyes’s staff at the Premier League champions – said: “I have spoken to him, he’s a person I speak to regularly. But I think we were both of the same mindset that it was time for me to be a manager and stand on my own two feet.

“David has been a massive influence for me as both a player and a coach and he and Walter Smith are probably my two biggest influences.

“David has massive knowledge of the game, a massive work ethic and great values, while Walter is the same and a fantastic man-manager and teaches you have to win.

“But I will be my own man, I have belief in my own methods and ideas and and genuinely believe something can happen. But I think I’d be a fool if I didn’t use the resources I have got and the advice I’ve got from top, top people.”

While Weir acknowledges that promotion back to the Championship must be the overriding priority for the Blades, who will start their third successive season in League One in August, he is keen to ensure that when the club return to where they consider they belong that it will be on a stable footing.

With the Blades operating with a reduced playing budget next season, buying their way back into the Championship is not an option, and Weir accepts the need to show ingenuity in the transfer market, allied to harnessing home-grown talents.

This has led to speculation he could utilise his contacts at Everton and friendship with Moyes to bring in some loan players, although his primary concern is developing the squad at his disposal.

Weir said: “I want to show young players there is a pathway while I also want to get good players who can complement the good ones here. That’s a challenge as there’s a lot of clubs out there looking for the same thing.

“But taking players on loan is not something I am averse to and I’d like to think people would trust me with their players. If that is an avenue, it’s something I’ll look at. But it’s not the first one and a quick fix for everything.

“Short-term, the aim here has got to be promotion, whatever way you dress it up. Hopefully, it will be as soon as possible, but we’ve been a League One club now for a couple of years and must take that into consideration.

“Long-term, there’s no secret where I feel the club belongs and the supporters do. But once we got there, we want to stay there and make it sustainable.”

Blades chief-executive Julian Winter insists the club’s three-man football board had no qualms about handing Weir the reins despite the Scot having never previously managed a club.

He has cited the example of his former club Watford, who gave chances to two of the brightest young British managerial talents in the game in Brendan Rodgers and Malky Mackay, as evidence that inexperience is not always a bad thing.

Winter, who says the board had three substantive meetings with Weir before making their decision, said: “I have worked in the past with two first-time managers in Brendan and Malky. People often see first-time managers as a greater risk than any appointment, but I don’t necessarily subscribe to that.

“It’s about the skills, philosophies and leadership styles people bring. No disrespect to the other candidates – and we had some really strong ones – but we felt David was the ideal person to take the club forward. There is a risk in every appointment and player acquisition. But what you can try is to minimise that risk. I think that by being patient and interviewing a number of candidates and being methodical, we have got there.

“David’s references speak for themselves and we have spoken to many people in the game and everyone has said it would be a fantastic appointment if we could get him.”

[email protected]