Sheffield United v West Brom: Blades need 'a touch of help' in the January transfer window, admits Chris Wilder

AMID a ferocious fight for automatic promotion to the Premier League, which could well go right down to the wire in 2024-25, Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder has acknowledged that his side require ‘a touch of help’ in the new year.

Few can accuse the Blades of not helping themselves on the pitch following an outstanding first half of the season made all the more laudable by the fact that the club were docked two points before a ball was kicked after being sanctioned for defaulting on payments to other clubs during the 2022-23 campaign.

Factor in the scale of the rebuild that faced Wilder in the summer amid the fall-out of a pitiful relegation season last term, allied to a protracted takeover saga and it only heightens the sense of achievement so far at United, who welcome managerless West Brom on Sunday lunch-time in their final game of 2024.

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The Boxing Day action saw Wilder’s side relinquish top spot after suffering their first home defeat of the season against promotion rivals Burnley, who moved a point behind them in the process.

Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder, pictured during the Championship home game with promotion rivals Burnley on Boxing Day. Photo by James Fearn/Getty Images.Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder, pictured during the Championship home game with promotion rivals Burnley on Boxing Day. Photo by James Fearn/Getty Images.
Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder, pictured during the Championship home game with promotion rivals Burnley on Boxing Day. Photo by James Fearn/Getty Images.

The result enabled Yorkshire rivals Leeds United to move up to the summit by the close of play on goal difference with the Whites, Blades, Burnley and outsiders Sunderland pitted in an intriguing four-way battle for the top two, as it stands.

Should the Blades beat Albion, they will pass a 50-point milestone before the old year is out. Come the new year and the focus will also be firmly on securing the reinforcements in the transfer market that Wilder has stressed that the club will require to give themselves the best chance of clinching automatic promotion come May.

Wilder met with co-chairmen Steven Rosen and Helmy Eltoukhy on Friday with recruitment matters high on the agenda, with new owners COH Sports having vowed to support the Blades chief in January.

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The 57-year-old is keen to bring in some hardened Championship nous, with the experience of United’s inexperienced bench there for all to see on Boxing Day. A potentially serious ankle injury sustained by impressive loanee Harry Souttar is another major concern too.

Wilder said: "I thought we had a really good window in the summer. But never really ‘nailed it’ to what we could have.

"I’m learning about the players and my recommendations to the board will be to make us better in the second part of the season.

"If it happens, great. If it doesn’t, we’ll work with what we’ve got.

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"We’ve put ourselves in a great position and there’s still a lot of football to be played. But yes, that’s the biggest thing; a touch of help.

"That teamsheet (versus Burnley) will say a thousand words as well in terms of where we’re at.

"We’ve been a little bit unfortunate with some injuries. It’s not something we can blame on load or conditioning – Blaster’s (Ollie Arblaster’s) injury, Souttar’s against Burnley and a bit of illness and a couple of other bits and pieces.

"These are things that are part and parcel of a rigorous season and you’ve got to have that experience and endurance, the balance and depth to the squad.

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"The teams who will do well in the second half of the season will show all those qualities."

United's reverse to Burnley was their first setback since October when they lost successive away games at Leeds and Middlesbrough. An excellent 11-match unbeaten sequence after those dual losses, incorporating nine victories, showed that the Blades possess a strong jaw, with Wilder bristling with indignation after one reporter questioned his side’s aptitude against leading sides following Boxing Day’s events in a post-match interview.

He countered: "I answered a ridiculous question about results in and around the teams at the top of the division.

"Is there a different competition when you win the games at the top of the division?

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"I don't know...I had to remind him that if we replicate the second part of the season, which will be some going, we might end up on 100 points or close to it.

"I’ve never accepted defeat easily. It stings, it hurts. That’s the same if I’m 57 or starting out as a 31-year-old manager.

"It’s not a time to start smashing things about or taking a wrecking ball to it.

"The reaction to disappointment – whoever it is in this division – is going to be key to a second successful part to the season." Loan winger Jesurun Rak-Sakyi (hamstring) is being assessed after missing the Burnley game alongside midfielder Vini Souza, who came off at half-time on Thursday with a similar issue.

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United face an Albion side who are still coming to terms with the departure of head coach Carlos Corberan to Spanish outfit Valencia.

The Midlanders began life without the former Huddersfield chief with a 2-1 loss at Derby on Boxing Day – with coaches Chris Brunt, Damia Abella and Boaz Myhill placed in caretaker charge until a permanent appointment is made.

Wilder added: "I don’t know what the level of that disappointment will be.

"It’s not an ideal situation for them, but it’s another group of players who, from a quality and depth point of view, is right up there."

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