Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder makes an admission about his attack

After making 10 changes to his starting eleven for Thursday’s Carabao Cup tie at Burnley, Wilder plans to unveil a more familiar line-up when United visit Aston Villa on Monday.

Although many of his picks are not difficult to predict, Wilder could spring a surprise in attack after pairing Billy Sharp and Oli McBurnie for the top-flight opener against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Insisting United’s stable of centre-forwards has been deliberately constructed to provide tactical flexibility, particularly given they lack the funds to sign a proven goalscorer at elite level, Wilder nevertheless acknowledged his decision poses a challenge for the likes of McBurnie, Sharp, David McGoldrick and Oliver Burke as they attempt to produce fluent performances.

However, with United finishing ninth in the table last term, only a season after being promoted from the Championship, he believes it is a sacrifice worth making.

“I’ve got to admit, I do feel sorry for some of the lads up there at times, because they want to get into a rhythm, I get that,” Wilder said. “It’s a sensible argument and one that people are quite within their rights to put forward.

“But I feel we have to do it this way, bring in different people for different games, because that’s what is best for us. We’ve got different people with different attributes and, if you look at what we’ve done over the past year or so, I think you’ve got to say it’s worked out pretty well for us so far. So there’s no point in changing it.”

"We need to have that difference, because of how we are,” Wilder said. “I think it’s vital for us.”

Villa, who will be playing their opening league match of the campaign, are unlikely to spring any shocks at the top end of the pitch after lavishing nearly £30m on striker Ollie Watkins and handing captain Jack Grealish a lucrative new contract, following reports Manchester United were plotting a move for the England international.

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