'We can do this' - Sheffield United's Enda Stevens reveals why he is confident Chris Wilder's team will begin climbing the Premier League table soon

Enda Stevens is convinced Sheffield United can survive in the Premier League this season after describing the news his team mates John Fleck and Lys Mousset are poised to make their returns from injury as a “massive boost” for Chris Wilder’s side.
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Speaking ahead of tomorrow’s game against West Ham, Stevens revealed how a series of meetings during the international break have lifted the mood behind the scenes following a difficult start to the new campaign.

United prepared for the visit of David Moyes’ squad at the foot of the table after losing seven and drawing one of their eight matches so far.

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But tracing the journey many of his colleagues have taken to the top-flight, Stevens, the former Portsmouth defender, told The Star: “I spend every day with this group of lads, that’s why I know we can do it. We’ve had to earn everything we’ve got, we’ve not been given anything - none of us - and most of us have had to come through the leagues to get here.

“We need to use that drive and determination to put ourselves back on track and, over the course of a football career, it’s not going to be always a bed of roses. You have tough times and bad patches, it’s about coming through the other side as quickly as possible.”

“The meeting we’ve had have been really positive,” Stevens, who missed the Republic of Ireland’s games against England, Wales and Bulgaria due to injury, continued. “The gaffer encourages everyone to speak up and we all voice an opinion. Mine is that we’ve been in most of the games we’ve played so far, we’ve not been a million miles off it and that we just need to do a few things better and get a few decisions. Just cut out the individual mistakes. We’re a positive group.

"The staff have been showing us things that we’ve been doing wrong but, just as importantly, they’ve been showing us a lot of the things that we’ve been doing right. And there have been plenty of things we’ve been doing right, that fall into that category. There’s experience and leadership here.”

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Although John Egan, Rhian Brewster and Sander Berge are doubts for the meeting with West Ham, Wilder used his latest media conference to confirm Fleck and Mousset, who has yet to feature so far this term, could feature after resuming full contact training. Both were integral parts of the team which finished ninth in the table last season, only a year after being promoted from the Championship.

Enda Stevens of Sheffield United says the return of John Fleck and Lys Mousset is a "massive boost" for Chris Wilder's team: Darren Staples/SportimageEnda Stevens of Sheffield United says the return of John Fleck and Lys Mousset is a "massive boost" for Chris Wilder's team: Darren Staples/Sportimage
Enda Stevens of Sheffield United says the return of John Fleck and Lys Mousset is a "massive boost" for Chris Wilder's team: Darren Staples/Sportimage

“It’s obviously a massive boost seeing those two come back,” Stevens said. “They’re two quality players who add to the squad. The lads know what they’re capable of, the standards they set themselves and it will only lift us and make us stronger. Hopefully they come back and that will give us another lift. It’s great to see them back out there on the training pitch again, because we know how good and how important they can be.”

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