Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder says return of football will boost nation's spirits after coronavirus lockdown

Sheffield United and their top-flight rivals have seen the Premier League season suspended indefinitely, in a bid to halt the spread of Covid-19.

The Blades have not played since early March, and are training at home after their Shirecliffe base was closed.

Debate about a restart date for football has raged recently, with skipper Billy Sharp yesterday admitting that a mid-May target seems 'realistic'.

And Wilder added today: "The players have obviously been given individual programmes to do and modern-day technology has allowed us to monitor and record those activities to the levels we have set them and we have done that very, very efficiently.

"We have been delighted with that and I think they realise as well that they need to hit to ground running when, hopefully, we do get back into it.

"I should imagine it will be a pre-season and then back into the games.

"Because I am 100 per cent certain that there is a massive enthusiasm, not just from the Premier League or just the Premier League clubs and players, but the overall nation, to get some football back out on the screens.

"Hopefully, that will boost morale in the country because there is not a lot of good news stories coming out of the media at the moment.

"Hopefully that will be one and we can shift our attentions to watching a bit of football through this terrible period."

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to The Star website and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content.

Visit https://www.thestar.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.