Sheffield United: Blades boss backs his team to beat the odds again

After securing automatic promotion from the Championship last season, United are preparing for their first taste of top-flight football in over a decade following a dramatic upturn in fortunes under the 51-year-old's stewardship.

Although Wilder concedes they will begin the campaign as relegation favourites, given many members of his squad are veterans of the club's 2017 League One title winning campaign, he insisted the achievements of Eddie Howe's squad can inspire United's players to overcome the the challenges they will face next term.

"We know what everyone else will be saying about us," he admitted. "But that will only spur us on.

"And we've only got to look at that they, Bournemouth, have done to see what is possible."

"If there's an example for us to look at then it's them," he added. "They came up (from League Two) and a lot of the players who gave them a foothold at that level came all the way through with them.

"You've only got to look at that to see what's possible if you're a good player. And these lads have shown that's what they are."