Sheffield United captain Billy Sharp told to carry on showing emotion following 'Wrexham-Gate'

As the fall-out from what an ill-tempered tie continues, which saw Sharp accuse the National League club of disrespect following the final whistle, Heckingbottom insisted the 37-year-old should not be criticised for speaking his mind - arguing the sport would be “nothing” without emotion.

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“You hear me speaking a lot about that,” Heckingbottom told The Star, as his focus turns towards tomorrow’s fixture against Swansea City at Bramall Lane. “About how important emotion and feeling is. We celebrate every win and every loss hurts. One of the hardest things is coming to do the media, immediately after a game, and having to try and stay on a level - trying to keep on an even keel if you like.

“We’ve got a really good group here, of players and staff. We know that sometimes things are going to be said that upset people. Whatever you say, someone is going to get upset about it and that’s one of the reasons I don’t bother with social media. Someone is always going to take it the wrong way, even if your intentions are good.”

“We want to win, always,” Heckingbottom continued. “We’re representing our club and we’re representing our city. Billy cares about both.”

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After Tuesday’s fourth round replay, which United won 3-1 thanks to goals from Anel Ahmedhodzic, Sander Berge and Sharp, the striker’s post-match comments clearly irked Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson and defender Ben Tozer.

The profile the visitors’ enjoy, thanks to their Hollywood co-owner Ryan Reynolds, means the furore had yet to die down when United, second in the Championship table and 10 points clear of third, returned to training yesterday.

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Although Heckingbottom has now drawn a line under the issue, in order to concentrate “totally” on City, he suggested some members of Wrexham’s off-the-pitch operations team were responsible for the bad feeling which followed the final whistle. The Welsh outfit’s official Twitter account published a post, containing an ‘eyes’ emoji tagged towards Tottenham Hotspur, during the build-up to the contest. Spurs now face United in the fifth round.

“I can’t believe how it’s been portrayed,” Heckingbottom said. “It’s how Billy felt. There wasn’t anything against Phil or his players. Maybe there was a lot of people getting involved who might have a lot to learn - like our name (Sheffield United, not Sheffield) for a start. Loads of people were getting involved who probably aren’t even interested in football, but that’s part of it.”

Oli McBurnie, who missed the clash with Wrexham, is hopeful of returning against his former employers City after being cleared to resume training following a calf issue. Tommy Doyle will not be considered for selection unless he takes part in this morning’s session at the Randox Health Academy but fellow midfielder John Fleck is pushing for a recall after a lengthy lay-off. Daniel Jebbison is still suspended, after being sent-off during United’s draw at the Racecourse Ground last month but will be available to face Middlesbrough on Wednesday night.

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