Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder rails against unfairness in football as his team prepares to face Wolves

“One hundred per cent, why would it suit the likes of us and Burnley or Aston Villa and Norwich,” the Sheffield United manager said, as he railed against the decision to change to the laws of the game mid-season and expressed concerns they had been implemented to assist “big and powerful” clubs. “Of course bringing in more substitutes was going to be better for the ones with the biggest squads, loads of superstar individuals and superstar academies. And the drinks break? Well I certainly didn’t need a drinks break on Sunday afternoon.”

On Wednesday, when Wolverhampton Wanderers visit Bramall Lane for a crucial Premier League fixture, Wilder could be forced to name a short-handed bench after a spate of injuries and selection issues tore a hole in his squad. It is something he has done twice already this season - against both Tottenham Hotspur and Burnley - after the Premier League increased the number of replacements managers are allowed to select as part of its ‘Project Restart’ framework.

Although being at a numerical disadvantage has not proved to be too much of a handicap, with United taking four points from those two games, Wilder, who opposed both that move and the introduction of drinks breaks, is convinced they highlight inequalities within the game.

“I didn’t need a drinks break at Burnley, because it was bloody freezing,” he said. “That was my second Bovril in July, which must be some sort of record in the history of Bovril drinking.

“I stick a load of black pepper in it and it gives you a lovely warm glow. Sometimes, though, they put too much in and it burns your tongue but that’s the price you pay for getting warm I suppose.”

If you look, there aren’t that many people having a drink,” Wilder continued. “It’s not two halves, it’s four quarters and that’s another change we have to get used to. Most people, ourselves included admittedly, are just using it to have a word with our players.

“We were told before the game when Arsenal came here recently that we weren’t allowed to coach in the break. But then I saw Mikel (Arteta, the Arsenal manager) doing it, gathering his troops around and thought ‘Well, that’s obviously all gone straight out of the window.’ It’s obvious to everybody what’s going off.”

Unbeaten since losing that FA Cup quarter-final to Arteta’s side, United initially found it difficult to navigate their way through English football’s post Covid-19 landscape - drawing one and losing three of their opening four fixtures. But after getting to grips with travelling to away matches on three buses, changing in portacabins and playing behind closed doors, they have prepared for the meeting with Wolves in eighth; only four point behind Nuno Espirito Santo’s sixth-placed side.

Although Wilder admitted everyone will have been inconvenienced by the new changes - “We’re all in the same boat” - he remains convinced that some have suffered more than others. After watching a catastrophic technology failure deny United what should have been a winning goal on their return to action at Aston Villa last month, Wilder promised to “get tougher” when it comes to questioning what he perceives as United’s unfair treatment at the hands of authority.

Claiming United were denied a clear cut spot-kick during the first-half of Sunday’s visit to Turf Moor, he cited a startling statistic surrounding the number of penalties top-flight teams have been awarded this term as he made good on that promise.

“We’ve had one,” Wilder said. “The two Manchester clubs have had 22 between them in total I think.

“I know they might be in the opposition bix a little bit more than us, okay. But we’ve had one. Just one all season, and that’s a big difference.”

“We should have had one last time out,” he added. “I’ve got the greatest of respect for Sean Dyche and his players, as everybody knows. But the guilty looks on the faces of Jay Rodriguez and Erik Pieters when it (a handball) happened, well that told you all you need to know.”

Although some will suspect Wilder’s comments are a ply to engender a siege mentality amongst his squad as they attempt to qualify for Europe only a season after being promoted, the 52-year-old has a long track record of confronting what he regards as football’s habit of looking after the moneymen rather than the little guys. When the campaign was suspended in March, before being brought out of mothballs 97 days later, he championed a drive to provide financial support for clubs lower down the pyramid whose very existence was threatened by the health crisis.

Despite plotting a course out of the second tier only 12 months earlier than United, Wilder does not view their latest assignment as a meeting of equals. Insisting his comments should not be interpreted as a slight on either Nuno Espirito Santo or his team - “He’s a great guy, I really like him” - Wilder reminded the visitors’ enjoy the luxury of being bankrolled by a Chinese conglomerate and boast a close working relationship with one of the world’s most powerful agents.

“For me, they were always a Premier League club in waiting with everything what happened off the pitch there,” Wilder said. “I don’t go along with them being a newly promoted side, I don’t know if you recognise the players they had in their group in the Championship. And that’s not disrespectful because they still have to go and get the results. Their manager has done brilliant. It’s a combination of a lot of things.

“If you look through, they’ve got some outstanding players.”

“I get on really well with Nuno, he always has a beer afterwards and is a good guy,” Wilder said. “His team plays great football and he doesn’t moan about decisions as much as me, but I think that’s his background.”

It is a measure of the progress United have made in recent months that a little over two years after suffering what Wilder described as a 3-0 “pummelling” at Molineux, a win would see them move to within touching distance of a side with the likes of Ruben Neves, Joao Moutinho and Adama Traore at their disposal. Neves was already an established Portugal international when he moved to the Black Country in the summer of 2017 while Traore, who excelled when United drew 1-1 with Wolves in December, reportedly interests the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United.

Dismissing suggestions Wolves’ confidence will have been dented after being beaten by Arsenal last time out, Wilder said: “Arsenal aren’t a bad club either, are they. I think it’s fair to say they’ve got some pretty decent players too.”

United are again set to be without John Fleck, John Lundstram and Luke Freeman although Jack O’Connell made his first appearance since March towards the end of the trip to Burnley.

“We are okay, there’s a few tired bodies,” Wilder said. “I always knew this schedule would suit the more powerful clubs in terms of squad sizes. There are a few tired bodies there so I have to pick the right team. We want to have that fluency we saw against Spurs and a bit at Burnley. For us to play Wolves, is a great challenge for us at this stage of the season.”

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