"Outstanding" Jack Robinson cements 'proper' Sheffield United reputation after tough Jack O'Connell task

He arrived to the unenviable task of competing with the imperious Jack O’Connell for a spot in the Sheffield United side - but Chris Wilder knew what he was getting in the former Liverpool youngster. “I definitely thought, when we signed him, that he was a Sheffield United player,” said Wilder, a man who knows more than most what that means.

“He loved a tackle, he loved the physical aspect of it and he could play. His background was at Liverpool; one of his first games was against Theo Walcott at the Emirates and he wrapped it up. His career maybe didn't go the way he thought it would when he first broke into Liverpool's side but he carved out a career at QPR and Forest and we brought him in.”

It was not all plain-sailing, as Unitedites mourned the absence of a cult hero in O’Connell and his absence - with the knee injury that eventually and tragically curtailed his promising playing career - coincided with a sorry relegation from the top-flight in front of mostly empty stadiums amidst the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. But Robinson has never phoned it in in his career and it speaks volumes about the Liverpudlian’s character that his biggest plaudits so far in a United shirt came last term, amidst the wreckage of another chastening Premier League experience.

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“He stood up to the challenge last year,” Wilder added. “Not many did, like, but he certainly did. Accepted the responsibility as captain, produced performances that didn't kid anybody and most importantly didn't kid the supporters. He earned their respect and that's the big thing. You earn it. You don't demand it, it's not a given. You have to earn everything that you want to earn in a career. He's had promotion, he's well respected and he's earned the respect of the supporters, which is major for us.”

This year has been slightly different for the club skipper, who has played a largely supporting role after an untimely injury early on saw the beginning of the Harry Souttar and Anel Ahmedhodzic partnership that has served United so well in their attempts to bounce back to the top-flight at the first attempt. Ahmedhodzic’s red card in the 2-2 draw at Coventry City opened the door again, and back-to-back clean sheets with Robinson in the side will give Wilder a welcome headache when Ahmedhodzic and Souttar - who will both miss this weekend’s trip to West Brom - are available again.

Asked how Robinson had coped with his spell on the sidelines, Wilder joked: “He's moaned every day, he's knocked on my door, he's been an absolute pain... no, he hasn't! Players all want to play, that's the hardest part of my job, making sure that group is content and happy and I'm not saying they need to be absolutely delighted, I don't want them to be jumping through hoops and skipping but they've got an important part of play and that player could be anybody.

“He was our outstanding player last season, head and shoulders our player of the year. And the skipper finds himself out of the team. What does he do? He gets on with it, gets himself ready, puts himself in a good position physically to make sure that he makes it hard now for the others to get back in. There are big decisions ... and that's what we want right the way through.”

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Brought in from Nottingham Forest in a £500,000 deal as cover and competition for O’Connell, Robinson has stepped out of his former teammate’s shadow and will hope that his contributions this season earn another contract offer, with his current deal set to expire next summer. Speaking in the summer, he told The Star of his desire to end his career at United after turning around his fortunes and winning over any sceptical Unitedites.

“We've talked a lot about Jack's performances and his development,” Wilder added. “He didn’t exactly start his career here on the front foot but became a hugely popular and influential player for us and will go down in my opinion as one of the best centre-backs that's ever represented us. And especially in the way we played. He got incredibly close to an England call-up, and Robbo had to fill some big boots.

“He led from the front, I saw it first-hand last season when I came back here and I knew we didn't have enough of those characters around. And if we did, they were injured. So he was fighting a pretty lone battle and at times things got on top of him emotionally, because he didn't like what he saw and what he was having to deal with.

“But he battled through it. He stood up at the end of the season and I thought his speech was absolutely spot on. He talked openly about the season and how we needed to put the record straight. It's been quite a difficult start for him, because he had to come out of the team through injury. But his influence has been huge.”