Sheffield United: Chris Wilder signs new contract

The development comes less than three months after Wilder steered the club back into Premier League, securing his second promotion since being appointed in May 2016.

As The Star first revealed, officials at Bramall Lane began exploring the possibility of extending the 51-year-old's agreement earlier this summer after he led United to a second placed finish in the Championship. Wilder was also handed improved terms at the beginning of the previous campaign, amid interest from a number of top-flight and fellow second tier sides.

Stephen Bettis, United’s chief executive, said: "On behalf of the board, I'm delighted that the formalities have been concluded and Chris has been rewarded.

"Chris signing a new contract underpins everything we are attempting to do at Bramall Lane. He's been the catalyst for our success over the past few years, he is a driven individual and his focus since promotion was secured has been preparing the club for the Premier League."

Wilder, who is overseeing his squad's training camp in Portugal ahead of Friday's friendly against Real Betis, has enjoyed remarkable success after taking charge of the team he represented as a player and has supported since childhood. United had just endured a mediocre season in League One when he replaced his predecessor Nigel Adkins at the helm. Only three seasons later, and with United preparing for their top-flight return following a 12 year absence, his previous agreement is thought to have contained a clause permitting talks to take place about extending his stay in South Yorkshire if they reached the highest level before it expired.

After United's exploits last season, which saw them out-perform big-spending sides such as West Bromwich Albion and play-off winners Aston Villa, Wilder was voted Manager of the Year by his peers in the League Managers' Association.

The new deal has been signed off by co-owners Kevin McCabe and HRH Prince Abdullah bin Musa'ad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who are both hoping to win sole control of United following the end of a High Court hearing designed to settle their dispute.