Chris Wilder shares responsibility for "harsh" Rhian Brewster red card as Sheffield United struggle continues

Rhian Brewster's stop-start Sheffield United career has suffered another setback after his reckless red card in the dramatic draw with West Ham United on Sunday. The striker, who has been restricted to nine appearances in the last calendar year by two injuries, will now miss United's next three games after his lunge on Emerson Palmieri.

For the former Liverpool man it is another frustration in a series of them throughout his time at Bramall Lane while many Blades fans made their own feelings clear after his reckless challenge in the dying minutes of the topsy-turvy 2-2 draw with the Hammers. Boss Chris Wilder drew comparisons with Frank Onyeka's poor challenge on Vini Souza during the Blades' victory over Brentford last month, which went punished only by a yellow card when many in the ground expected VAR to upgrade it to a red.

"I know people say you can't differentiate between a forward's tackle and a centre-half's tackle but for me, it's a centre-forward's tackle," Wilder said. "He's gone in to try and win the ball. I didn't think it was particularly high but we'll all have different opinions on it.

"For me, thinking back to the Brentford tackle on Vini, we're all after consistency. So if Vini's one gets the lad sent off, then we have something to judge it on going forward with Rhian's one. I was disappointed for Rhian but he'll have to suffer and take his medicine, then get back and hopefully add to an improving individual and team performance that's happening at the moment."

Top ex-ref's verdict on big decisions in Blades' West Ham draw Introduced as an 80th-minute substitute, Brewster saw red in the 90th after catching Emerson down the right touchline. Referee Michael Salisbury initially issued a yellow card before taking a look at his pitchside monitor and upgrading it to a red, with Brewster already making his way off the pitch and angrily making his way back to the dressing room.

Signed to great fanfare back in October 2020 - for what United described as a club-record fee that could have risen as high as £23.5m with add-ons, but has not reached that amount - Brewster has failed to show Unitedites the form that earmarked him as one of English football's most promising young strikers, with a series of ill-timed injuries hampering him at key times.

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Still only 23 years of age, Brewster's character and personality make him a popular figure at United and there is a lot of goodwill that exists towards him behind the scenes. But players, particularly strikers, are judged on what happens on the pitch rather than around Bramall Lane or Shirecliffe and with his contract set to expire at the end of next season, he will return more determined than ever to kickstart his Blades career.

"I'm desperate for him," Wilder added. "And do you know what? I've told him to push in and he's got the message too late. For me he's done it on my shout, so I've got to take a bit of responsibility. If I can take two of the three-match ban, because I told him to go and squeeze in. It was just a reaction to go and genuinely try and win the ball. We all know what type of player he is and I've got to say it's a little bit harsh on him. We've got to go and make tackles and what's a mistimed tackle and what's a reckless tackle? For me, it was a mistimed tackle and that was it."