Sheffield United’s ‘tourists’ now have Europe on their itinerary

That Chelsea should be in the running to play in next season’s Champions League is only to be expected. The reigning Europa League winners have played in Europe for every season bar one since 1997-98. The Blades have never done it but seventh in the Premier League this morning, Wednesday’s dramatic 1-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers has maintained their belief they can in 2020-21.

It is a far cry from August’s first 45 minutes between the sides as Tammy Abraham’s goals put the Blues into a 2-0 lead. A second-half comeback which saw the Blades claim a point through Callum Robinson and a Kurt Zouma own goal was a much better sign of the season to come from Wilder’s men.

“You would have thought in the first half we were taking selfies and asking for autographs because they were far better than us,” recalls Wilder. “The point at Bournemouth (on the season’s opening weekend) gave us a boost and the first win (at home to Crystal Palace) was key on a fabulous afternoon, it seems a million miles away.

“That was our first visit to a top-four club (since promotion back to the Premier League).

“We were 2-0 down in front of 40,000 at Chelsea and had about 15 per cent of the ball! The keeper (Dean Henderson) dropped one (for Abraham to open the scoring), the centre-backs (Jack O’Connell and John Egan) crashed into each other (for the second) and we missed a few chances... it was quite quiet (in the dressing room)!

“We were way off it and I said at half-time the boys had to regroup and get themselves back on track and they did. The third goal was the most important one, if they’d got it, it would have been a comfortable afternoon.

“We spoke about our attitude to defeat at the start of the season and mentality was the big thing for me.

“I knew the group was strong and had a huge desire to do well for themselves and as a team, but we were still going into uncharted waters. We had to learn fast.

“We didn’t want to sit back and get done and if we were going to get done in games, we were going to do it on the front foot. We stayed true to that.”

Their mentality that day was characteristic of what Sheffield United have produced since.

They had good momentum when the coronavirus brought a temporary halt to the season but restarted with new rules favouring the bigger squads, and their hitherto ever-present centre-back O’Connell injured. They drew at Aston Villa and lost the next three but even with key midfielders John Lundstram and John Fleck joining the injured list, they have scrambled back above Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal.

Their skill is not to be underestimated but their mental resolve is huge, and appreciated by a manager whose bluntness is a strength.

“They can’t be precious in our changing rooms,” he says of the response he got in west London. “We livened ourselves up and got something to fight for with that early Callum goal.

“It was an entertaining afternoon, one our fans would have no doubt loved, and we rode our luck a couple of times and the goalkeeper (Kepa Arrizabalaga) made a couple of great saves.

“Dean will feel he could have done better with one of their goals but he made a big save at 2-1. It was a big moment and excellent for him to contribute in that way,” he said.

A verdict is expected next week but if Manchester City fail to overturn their two-year European ban, the Premier League’s top seven will qualify for next season’s competitions, alongside the FA Cup winners or eighth place.

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