Chris Wilder: The Sheffield United manager’s biggest strengths and the secrets behind his success, according to former player
Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder was dubbed the manager of the century by fellow coach Phil Brown in October 2017.It seemed a pretty outlandish claim at the time but given Wilders Sheffield United will be playing in the Premier League next season the Blades second promotion in the space of three seasons its definitely not the most outrageous claim made in football.
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5Wilder and his beloved Blades will take part in the Premier League next seasonWilder has had brilliant success elsewhere guiding Oxford United back into the Football League in 2010 and stabilising them in League Two before getting Northampton Town promoted into League One in 2016.To a casual observer Wilder may seem like a normal bloke, born and bred in Stocksbridge, Sheffield but these achievements are far from normal.But what is Wilder the man like and what are the secrets behind his managerial successes?talkSPORT.com had a chat with Ryan Clarke, who played as a goalkeeper under Wilder at Oxford and Northampton in the seasons where both sides got promoted. You didnt want to cross him, Clarke recalls of his earliest memory of Wilder.Clarke, who’s now at National League South club Bath City, arrived at the Kassam Stadium in May 2009 from Salisbury City and admits he wasnt aware at first that the plan was to win promotion back into the Football League at Oxford. He soon learnt.Intense training sessions with very high standards no one was allowed to slack off. And if you didnt buy into Wilders methods, you were gone.
Bob Mills pays an emotional tribute to Justin Edinburgh However, Wilder was not just the strict enforcer at Oxford.Clarke adds: He was a mans man really. He was up for a laugh and a joke. As long as you do things properly hell look after you. But he could be quite ruthless.He got the best out of me as a player.
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5talkSPORT.com spoke to Clarke, who played under Wilder at Oxford and NorthamptonOne of his strong points is that he knew the players on the other teams inside-out. Wed do tactical stuff towards the end of the week and wed know the other players inside-out. His knowledge of the league, even in League Two was very good.One of his favourite sayings was if you lose one or two, you certainly dont lose three. I dont think we ever did that [lose three in a row] because he always got the right sort of players in.And in May 2010, it was mission accomplished for Oxford as they got back into the Football League four years after being relegated with a 3-1 victory over York City in the play-off final, leaving the Yellows faithful with memories that will last a lifetime.Wilder was unable to get Oxford up another league but his talents were not going unnoticed and he became manager of Northampton in January 2014, bringing Clarke with him in July 2015.
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The Cobblers could have been forgiven for failing to produce on the pitch as in October 2015, HM Revenue and Customs came knocking at Sixfields Stadium with a winding up petition over unpaid taxes.All that uncertainty at the club could have taken its toll on the players and manager.In the end, Northampton won League Two in the 2015/16 campaign, finishing the season on 99 points.Clarke said: That never really affected us to be fair. There was stuff going on in the background but the players just got on with it.We had a very experienced squad [at Northampton] with a lot of promotion experience within the team. Because the team was doing so well, Chris didnt actually have to manage the team a lot because the boys were just taking care of it and it just snowballed.But at the same time the reason that was the case is because he brought the right sort of players in.
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5Clarke holds the League Two trophy after Northampton’s brilliant 2015/16 season on the pitchHowever, that summer Wilder and Northampton would part company because the manager received an offer from boyhood club Sheffield United. He couldnt refuse it.Its been a whirlwind at Brammall Lane over the last three seasons and now the Blades find themselves in the big time once again.But what is Wilders biggest strength?Clarke said: Probably his man-management how to get the best out of players. He knows which ones need a kick up the backside, the ones that need an arm around them and the ones that he just needs to leave alone.His man-management is very good and I think thats going to stand in him in good stead going into the Premier League because youve got to be able to man-manage players on huge amounts of money and its a big jump up. Thats a massive thing in todays game.
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5Clarke believes Wilder’s brilliant man-management skills helps him get the best out of his playersAnd can Wilder keep Sheffield United in the top flight?Clarke added: Itll be a tough ask but yeah I think he can. If theres one thing he can do its when things arent going well its getting his team back on track.Thats another thing hes very good at. That might be crucial because its going to be a hell of a tough season for them.Ive not been in and around the changing rooms [at Sheffield United] but you can imagine the sorts of things that are going on and Im sure hes gone about his business in a similar way to what hes done in the past because its worked well.
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5Chris Wilder celebrates promotion with Sheffield UnitedSo whether Wilder can get Sheffield United to make the jump into becoming an established Premier League side remains to be seen.But its clear hes as ready as hell ever be for that challenge because he can do a little bit of everything.
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