Chris Wilder makes Sheffield Wednesday promise as Sheffield United look to continue resurgence with defining derby double
Chris Wilder makes Sheffield Wednesday promise as Sheffield United look to continue resurgence with defining derby double
Chris Wilder has promised Sheffield United supporters that his side will not “shortcut” next Sunday’s Steel City derby against arch-rivals Wednesday, despite the precarious situation the Owls find themselves in. A torrid season for Henrik Pedersen’s men sees them on the brink of relegation as early as February.
Their demotion to League One could even be confirmed with defeat at Bramall Lane if other results go against Wednesday, although they did at least break their long goal drought in a 2-1 defeat at home to Barry Bannan’s Millwall on Saturday afternoon.
United cruised to a 3-0 win earlier this season at Hillsborough and the result could have been even more emphatic but there will be no assumption of victory in the United camp in the eight days before the latest derby game.
But there will be an extra spring in the step of United after a last-gasp victory at Portsmouth this afternoon, which cut the gap between themselves and the play-offs to six points with 14 games to go.
Chris Wilder makes Sheffield Wednesday promise as Sheffield United look to continue resurgence with defining derby double
“We’ve got a big week ahead of us,” Wilder admitted at Fratton Park. “There'll be no shortcuts into that one. Everybody knows the importance of that game next Sunday. It was massively important that we came off the back of a result and to get the win is brilliant.
“And hopefully it gives us a real boost going into a big week. We've not won enough games from losing positions and we've not drawn enough games from losing positions. That's an art, and that's a habit and it's a quality.
“Everyone else does it. I see everybody else do it; not play at their best but find something. And when we're at our best, for me, we can go toe-to-toe with the top teams. As we've seen against Ipswich, against Middlesbrough, even against Coventry early on.
“And when we're having to show what we're about, what's under the shirt and what the badge means for us all, we have to dial ourselves in and buy into that as well.”