Sheffield United's Chris Wilder casts doubt on his Bramall Lane future

In taking the Blades from League One to the brink of European qualification in 2019-20, Wilder has been one of the club's most successful managers of recent times, and a former player and boyhood fan to boot. Chairman Prince Musaad bin Khalid Al Saud was very vocal in his support for Wilder before Christmas, but the latter did not hide his frustration that the pair have yet to have the important talks about the direction the clubs needs to head in next, with relegation from the Premier League sadly looking inevitable.

Asked directly if he expected to still be the manager next season, his answer was typically honest: “I don't know.”

Asked if he wanted to stay, he added: “Yep, definitely, yep. If we stick to the plan.”

“The plan” seems to be the issue. Wilder has made it clear he wants the squad to be kept together, and that he feels the infrastructure of the club is way behind the progress of the first team, and needs to catch up.

“There's always a short-, medium- and long-term plan and that is determined by other people, that plan, because I know which way I want to take the football club,” said Wilder.

“I think (those conversations) should be (happening), but they're not happening.”

The Blades are 15 points adrift of Premier League safety with 12 matches to go, starting with Wednesday's visit of Aston Villa. Without those long-term conversations, Wilder says his only focus can be getting a result from that game without the help of any of the players who missed Sunday's defeat to Liverpool returning from injury.

“(It's) head down, onto the Villa game and see if we can get a result there and what will be, will be,” he said.

“Nothing surprises you in football, you just get your head down. Things change, we all understand that. You just crack on with it and try to do as much as we possibly can for this group of players I think are trying to improve this football club.”

Considering the way Wilder has transformed the football club and its fortunes, they were ominous words for his fellow Blades supporters.

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