'There's a few I don't get on with' - Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder lifts the lid on his relationship with Wolves' Nuno Espirito Santo and other Premier League bosses
and live on Freeview channel 276
After lavishing praise on Nuno Espirito Santo, and having done the same to Burnley’s Sean Dyche, the 52-year-old expressed concerns people might think he is becoming overly sentimental.
Nothing, it quickly became apparent, could be further from the truth.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“There’s a few I don’t get on with, just remember that,” Wilder smiled, referring to his relationships with other Premier League managers. “I try to get on with everyone but I don’t want to sound as if I’m all over everyone in this division. There’s quite a few that look at and think ‘I’m not so sure about you, pal.’ Trust me. That’s definitely the case.”
Although Wilder declined to name those he’s got his suspicions about, Nuno isn’t one of them. The two don’t regard themselves as close mates. They are very different characters. But when it comes to football, the Portuguese certainly commands Wilder’s respect.
“Nuno won’t understand some of my frustrations because he’s far too chilled for that,” Wilder, who has spent the build up to tonight’s match railing against perceived injustices and working out how best to utilise an injury depleted squad. “I think it’s his background probably.
“He’s probably got the ideal personality for this business. He’s as cool as a cucumber off the pitch but he isn’t on the sidelines."
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdNeil Warnock, Wilder’s predecessor at Bramall Lane, discovered as much two years ago when Wolves beat his then employers Cardiff City en route to promotion from the Championship. Now in charge of Middlesbrough, Warnock labelled his opposite number “a disgrace” for not shaking his hand before launching into a wild celebration. Although the former United chief later backtracked, he described Nuno’s coaching staff as “probably the worst on the touchline” during a game.
“He’s passionate, Nuno,” Wilder said, providing his own take on the incident. “I’ve got no issue with that, celebrate as much as you want."
United prepared for tomorrow’s meeting with Wolves in eighth, two place and four points behind the visitors from Molineux - where Wilder’s men drew 1-1 earlier this term. Lys Mousset scored the opening goal with less than three minutes on the clock and led until Matt Doherty equalised midway through the second-half.
Twenty-two months earlier, 10 after being crowned League One champions and 10 before they also secured top-flight status, Wilder admitted United had been “pummelled” during a 3-0 defeat in the Black Country. Privately, it is a source of great pride behind the scenes at the South Yorkshire club that they enter this evening’s contest on Wolves’ coat-tails.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“Listen, off the pitch, they’re a long way in front of us, with everything that’s gone off there,” Wilder said, reminding how Nuno is effectively employed by Fosun - a Chinese conglomerate and investment company which owns stakes in brands such as Tsingtao, Club Med and Cirque de Soleil. “But what we’ve got to do is try and close that gap in our own way.”