Sheffield United must find answers to a growing problem as previous strength threatens to become a weakness
Sheffield United have been hit by a growing list of injuries, with Chris Wilder warning that the players stepping in over the coming weeks could prove crucial to the Blades' hopes of a successful season...
Sheffield United have gone from a relatively clean bill of health to losing several players in a short space of time - and those stepping in to replace them could prove crucial to the Blades’ hopes of having a successful season. United were rocked just before the international break by a huge Femi Seriki blow.
His patellar tendon rupture will keep him out for at least the rest of the campaign, and came at a time when United had already lost the likes of Ryan One and Joe Rothwell to unfortunate, non-contact injuries.
One suffered a recurrence of the hamstring issue that kept him out earlier in the season while Rothwell went under the knife recently after suffering a groin injury in the warm-up before victory over Wrexham.
Jamie Shackleton and Matt Doherty are also sidelined while Patrick Bamford is expected to return from a shoulder issue when the Blades face Charlton Athletic in their first game after the break.
During United’s last promotion to the Premier League in 2019 under him, Wilder was quick to praise the likes of Martin Cranie and Kieran Dowell for their contributions. And this time around, some other players may have to step up as United plot their way through to Christmas.
“We’ve gone from a pretty clean bill of health, and an availability record that was pretty good, to losing some players,” Wilder said. “That sometimes happens, and it’s about how you deal with it.
“I’ve always said that, if you're going to have a successful season, it's not about the players that play the 46 games. It's about the players that come in and play five, 10, 15 games.
“You need that competition for places and when the opportunity arises for those players to step in, the performance levels don't dip or drop out there.
“It’s not Liverpool of the 1980s any more. It's a 20, 21, 22, 23-man game. And the strongest ones are going to be putting themselves in a position after Christmas to kick on. And hopefully that'll be the case with us.”
Defeat at Charlton Athletic on Saturday ended United’s unbeaten run but they went into the international break still only two points shy of eighth-placed QPR as the Championship table begins to take shape.