'They were down the bottom' - Phil Parkinson praises Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder ahead of Wrexham clash
Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson has credited Chris Wilder with getting Sheffield United “going again” ahead of Saturday’s Championship clash at Bramall Lane.
After being sacked by the Blades last June, being replaced by Rubén Sellés, Wilder returned to Bramall Lane as soon as September after the former was dismissed just six games into his tenure.
Tasked with turning United’s fortunes around after losing each of their first five Championship matches, Wilder has navigated the Blades into a position where a top six finish is still a mathematical possibility with eight games of the season remaining.
United are currently 15th in the table, ten points behind sixth-placed Southampton, who leapfrogged Wrexham to climb into the final play-off spot with a 1-0 triumph over Norwich City on Wednesday evening.
Overcoming a ten-point deficit to force their way into the top six with just eight games left to play feels as though it will be too big a gap for United to try and bridge. However, they are focused on trying to finish the season as strongly as possible and seeing where their results take them.
Having been playing catch-up all season, the Blades, to their credit, have done well to force their way into play-off contention ahead of the final international break of the season. And in the opinion of Wrexham boss Parkinson, who is looking to try and lead his side to a fourth successive promotion, United’s decision to sack Wilder last summer made little sense.
"Chris, it's a bit strange that he didn't stay there after last year,” Parkinson said, as quoted by BBC Sport. “I don't think anyone could quite work that out in football.
"But he didn't, but they quickly got him back and obviously he's got a lot of history there. I know Chrissy well. We were at Southampton together as kids and he's always been a Sheffield United fan, even in those days.
"It's the third time he's been back there and he's got them going again. When he took over, they were down the bottom and he's had to reshape the team to a certain degree, but they're a good side.
"There's a lot of players there who have been involved in promotion teams, but it's about us at the weekend."
On visiting Bramall Lane, Parkinson added: "Bramall Lane is an amazing arena to play at. Their supporters will be vociferously behind the team and I know our supporters are going to play their part.
"As a team and a staff, we've got to be ready to finish this block of games off and bring us back into the last seven games with a great chance."