Chris Wilder answered the question over Romelle Donovan’s absence from the Sheffield United starting XI after Jordan Ayew offered glimpses of his quality on his full debut against Bristol City...

An hour and 15 minutes before kick-off, when Sheffield United's team news was confirmed ahead of their clash with Bristol City, you could almost feel the collective eyebrow raising from the Ashton Gate press room. A full debut for Jordan Ayew, Sydie Peck on the bench and still no Romelle Donovan.

The on-loan Brentford youngster started on the bench for the fifth successive game, with all manner of theories abounding about why he has only played a supporting role in recent times.

Managers live and die by their decisions and they are made on far more factors than anyone on the outside can ever really comprehend. Fans were incredulous that Donovan didn't start against Lincoln City recently; Wilder later revealed he'd been suffering with illness.

It could be a tactical decision, or a chink that United's coaching staff have spotted in the armour of the opposition. It could be that the player in front of him is simply playing well enough to stay in the team.

On the flipside the teenager is a remarkable wildcard option to throw on from the bench and it's worth remembering he's also some way from the finished article. In an ideal world, with Tahith Chong not missing for most of the season so far, he probably wouldn't have played the amount of football he has.

"There always is," said Wilder, when The Star asked about Donovan at Ashton Gate and mentioned that there had been questions about his absence. "If I sit here and talk about it ... I don't have to explain my team selections and why.

"I'll explain the result today, which is an away win. I'm not being arrogant about that. There are a lot of things that go into why we make decisions, a lot of thought.

"It's just not off the cuff and written on the back of a beer mat when we're sat around. There's a reason when we're playing against certain teams as well.

"I think Michael [Skabula, the City manager] will have been asked the same question. But maybe just celebrate the win, eh?"

It's a fair point, but such is the velocity of social media debate these days that even in victory these questions are raised by supporters. Donovan looked determined to prove a point when he did come off the bench, running around like a man possessed.

When he is eventually let off the leash from the start, any frustration he has been feeling probably won't be a bad thing if it feeds into his performance. We're still not a quarter of the way through the season - United careers, like Rome, weren't built in a day.

Ayew may be in the twilight of his career but he will still have been happy to perhaps silence a few doubters with a decent showing on his full debut, before he inevitably faded before making way.

His off-ball work was good, helping set the press, and there were some signs of his undoubted quality with a few passes and touches. "He'll be pleased with his full debut," Wilder said.

"And I think people will have seen glimpses of why we brought him to the football club. He's bright and clever, and part of quite a lot of the good stuff that we played in the first half today."