The true extent of Sheffield United's injury problems will shortly be revealed

United enter Saturday’s FA Cup tie against Bristol Rovers still searching for their first win of the season, with efforts to kickstart the “amazing” sequence of results Wilder admits is now required to preserve his team’s top-flight status being hampered by a series of fitness issues behind the scenes.

Although Jack O’Connell and Sander Berge are out for the foreseeable future after undergoing surgery, the sight of United being unable to name their full complement of substitutes at Crystal Palace last weekend suggested the selection issues Wilder is facing are more serious than first thought. With Covid-19 also eating into the options at his disposal, the 53-year-old had confirmed Oli McBurnie and Oliver Burke were in danger of missing the trip to Selhurst Park, where first-half goals from Jeffrey Schlupp and Eberechi Eze condemned United to their 15th defeat in 17 PL outings this term. But with Jack Rodwell also failing to appear, there are suspicions a casualty list which also includes the names of Jack Robinson and Billy Sharp is longer than Wilder admits.

“I’d like to think we won’t have the same number out (for Rovers),” he said, revealing nine senior players were unavailable for selection in south London. “There’s some long-term. I won’t disclose too much about that.”

Despite creating the impression that both McBurnie (shoulder) and Burke (back) were close to featuring against Palace, Wilder has repeatedly ignored invitations to elaborate on either the extent of their injuries or the type of treatment they are receiving. Nor was there any suggestion that Robinson, who was substituted early in the second period of last month’s loss to Burnley, had been withdrawn for something other than tactical reasons.

With United being warned against making wholesale changes for the third round fixture at the Memorial Stadium, the starting eleven Wilder unveils is likely to shed further light on the true magnitude of the situation.

“It doesn’t give you the best opportunity, does it, having so many out,” Wilder said. “Hopefully things are going to ease up, because we need our best players, or as many of our best players as possible, available to us. I think everyone can appreciate why. Sometimes, you are left scratching your head a bit.”

Although Wilder has previously stated that O’Connell could miss the rest of the campaign, the centre-half is understood to be convinced medical staff overseeing his rehabilitation will give him the all-clear to return sometime in the spring. Berge is set to be absent for around another two months, after one of his hamstrings became dislodged at the beginning of United’s loss to Manchester United three weeks ago.

“They’re working hard and putting it all in,” Wilder said. “They’re doing everything they possibly can to get back as quickly as they can and in the best possible shape.”

An important message: Thank you for reading this article, one of dozens we publish every single day to provide you with the best, most up-to-date and most informative coverage of YOUR club. This depth of coverage costs, so to help us maintain the high-quality reporting that you are used to from the football team at The Star, please consider taking out a subscription to our new discounted sports-only package. You'll find all the details at https://www.thestar.co.uk/subscriptions/sports. Your support is much appreciated.