"No wind-up" - Chris Wilder makes huge Leeds United Premier League claim ahead of Sheffield United trip
Chris Wilder makes huge Leeds United Premier League claim ahead of Sheffield United clash
Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder has described Leeds United as "a top six English Premier League club" ahead of Monday night's epic top-of-the-table clash between the two Yorkshire rivals at Bramall Lane. Just two points separate the two sides at the summit of the Championship amid a four-horse automatic promotion race.
The Blades would have been level with Leeds but for their two-point deduction in the summer but it is Daniel Farke's side who have garnered the most attention this season with their free-flowing football seeing them earmarked as almost certainties for promotion.
The Blades, though, are having a superb season themselves and although Wilder insisted he isn't interested in his side gaining plaudits in the wider football world, he has no doubt about the size of the task facing his side early next week.
"They're a massive club," Wilder admitted. "They're a top six English Premier League club, for me. I think they're right up there. I saw something recently about who's the bigger club, them or Newcastle United, and for me it's a toss of coin. There's the likes of Aston Villa in there as well; huge clubs historically.
"I'm not trying to unsettle anyone, that's just how it is. When you've won a load of things in the past and are a big, one-team city who could get 50,000 fans, they attract good players and they invest in the team.
"There's pressure either way to win games and they're a huge football club. And when you're playing huge clubs, it does go up a notch. They're a powerhouse of English football. I won't change my opinion of that, I haven't changed that since the early 90s when my pal [Jon Newsome] scored in a game at the Lane to win them the old first division. It's always been the same."
Some just up the M1 may interpret Wilder's praise as a psychological ploy to increase the pressure on the visitors - but he insists that is not the case.
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"People will say I'm trying to wind people up or play mind games but not at all," Wilder added. "They're very good individually and collectively and have an outstanding manager. For us, the game takes care of itself.
"There'll be no change in our preparation and approach. It's going to be talked about because of both teams and how their seasons have gone so far. But everyone in our camp is looking forward to it. You want to play the best, and we'll be doing that on Monday night."