Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher compares Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder favourably to 'next Tottenham Hotspur manager' Eddie Howe ahead of Bournemouth clash

Jamie Carragher, the Liverpool legend, has revealed his admiration for Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder after United's superb first season back in the Premier League.
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The Blades, only promoted back to the top-flight last season after a 12-year absence, go into the last 13 games of the campaign still in with a chance of securing European football for the first time in the club's history.

Wilder's tactics have also come in for widespread praise, too; using overlapping centre-halves to overload opponents, to good effect.

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Not every pundit is a fan - the BBC's Garth Crooks remarkably branded United 'basic' earlier in the season - but Sky Sports' Carragher singled out Wilder for praise in his latest column for the Daily Telegraph.

Jamie Carragher. Pic: PA.Jamie Carragher. Pic: PA.
Jamie Carragher. Pic: PA.

"When you look at the whole package - the transfer resources available, the progressive style of football and the nature of results and performances - Wilder has achieved something few newly-promoted coaches have managed," Carragher wrote.

"He has brought genuine tactical innovation to the Premier League and demonstrated it is possible to thrive by playing a front-footed rather than negative, dour game.

"I am looking forward to seeing how Wilder’s coaching career develops, and what kinds of opportunities present themselves or attract him in the future.

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"We all know how difficult it is for English managers to get the biggest Premier League jobs. It is easier to get the England job than one at a top-six club."

Carragher compared Wilder to Eddie Howe, the Bournemouth manager who Wilder will go up against once again this Sunday.

"Howe is seen as more sophisticated, possessing purer footballing beliefs, a manager-in-waiting for a club such as Tottenham Hotspur, or even England.

"Do we feel the same way about Wilder? There is a patronising tone about the praise heaped upon him.

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"Does he have too much of a plain-speaking northern accent? Is it because he is not deemed ‘fashionable?' I keep hearing how his side has qualities such as togetherness, spirit and organisation - attributes which ought to be compulsory in any team but tend to be emphasised more when judging sides of limited ability.

"You never hear Bournemouth described in such a manner, the implication being there is more finesse to their game. It is not true."

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