Chris Wilder's Sheffield United future promise after “idiots” point ahead of crunch Cardiff City clash
Chris Wilder's Sheffield United future promise after “idiots” point ahead of crunch Cardiff City clash
Chris Wilder insists that the burning ambition for success burns as bright within him as ever despite Sheffield United’s faltering form in the race for the Premier League. The Blades’ nightmare week saw them go from two points ahead of Leeds and Burnley to five points adrift, with just four games left of the regular Championship season.
Wilder’s men need to breathe fresh life into their promotion push after three successive defeats that no-one saw coming, with the next chance coming up on Good Friday with a home clash against Cardiff City before Monday’s trip to Turf Moor to face Burnley.
That game had long been earmarked as a promotion-decider but it could be rendered virtually immaterial if the Blades don’t return to winning ways against the struggling Bluebirds, who travel to Bramall Lane third bottom in the Championship table and on the back of just one win in their last eight games.
“To be a pro, you've got to have a win inside of you. Whatever the game or occasion, you can't turn up not wanting to win. Even if I was in a mid-table team that had nothing to play for, the desire and ambition of myself, and hopefully my team, would be to win a game of football. Nothing replicates that.
“That's how we should approach everything we do, whether it's a five-a-side, a skills game, a pre-season friendly, a cup game. To get over all the hurdles you have to, to have a career and then the idiots amongst us want to stay in it. The sensible ones don't. But that's the buzz and the winning feeling that you crave and you're always chasing.
“And you always should chase, whether you're a player or a manager. I've always chased that feeling personally. And the players if they want to be successful and play in that big league, they have to chase that winning feeling as well.
“Whatever it is, you have to have that burning ambition and desire inside you. I've had it for a long time and it still burns as brightly as it's ever done. And I think you'll realise why we're down at the moment.
“If I just said: ‘Do you know what? I'm coming to the back end of my career and I’ve done okay, I’ve had a decent career, playing-wise and manager-wise. I'll just see it out.' That isn't the case. And that won't be the case in my team. It’s back to basics on Friday night and we'll see if we can put on a performance and get a result.”