The delicate balance Chris Wilder must strike with Sheffield United ahead of Bournemouth “challenge”

With confidence on the floor and belief apparently dropping as alarmingly as Sheffield United’s goal difference, the actions and demeanour of Chris Wilder and his coaching staff have become even more important in recent weeks.

Rightly or wrongly, in a sport that is won and lost by those who cross the white line, players increasingly take their lead from the men at the helm and it would be no use Wilder telling his troops to stay positive and optimistic if he was walking around Shirecliffe with a face like thunder.

At the same time pretending that all was rosy at Bramall Lane would be futile, too. The Premier League table tells its own story - United rock bottom, three wins from 27 games and 72 goals conceded giving a goal difference of -50 that effectively leaves them 12 points off what would be the greatest of great escapes.

The manager is not throwing in the towel just yet, however, even after conceding that inspiring this United side is the biggest test of a managerial career that saw Halifax go bust while he was at the helm and his Northampton players go months without wages during their title-winning season.

"I should be up for an Oscar at times, although I'm not sure I'll win that,” Wilder admitted ahead of Saturday’s trip to Bournemouth on the balance between burying and backing the group of players he admitted were “broken” after Monday night’s 6-0 shellacking at home to Arsenal.

"There's times when you want to come in and you want to chuck teacups about and whatever but there's a time and a place. So you have to be balanced in terms of how you are and read the situation. That's the way it is. I'd like it not to be but you have to read the room, read the situation, read the occasion and where the players are. They need help.

"But I'm not going to mug myself off by spinning it and saying it was great and we did this right and that right and the stats said we did this right and that. You're there, live on Sky on a Monday night, everyone in the world watching you, and the performance is the performance.

"You have to analyse that and talk about it pretty quickly, pretty emotionally after games so I'm not chucking anybody under the bus, it is what it is for everybody to see - our supporters, other supporters, so-called pundits, everybody, owners, the lot. So you have to be honest, which I've always been with my assessment of my team, whether it's good or bad.

"But we have to try and help the players get through what we need to do and get that balance right because you have to deal with certain situations. We have to deal with the start, we have to deal with the goals, we have to deal with the manner of the goals, we have to deal with looking at my team being a passive team at the moment when these things are happening.”

United were not passive in victory at Luton or in plucky draws against Aston Villa and West Ham, Wilder rightly argues but there is no doubt that “passive” is one of the kinder descriptions for their performances recently against Arsenal, Brighton (twice) and Villa at home.

"A phrase that people talk about now is you have to own that, which we have to, and take responsibility. But we've got to try and help the players as well. Deal with the situation, deal with the truth, then quickly moving on for us to be positive about that next challenge. Which is obviously the challenge of getting a performance right on Saturday.”