Chris Wilder found his voice back on Saturday when his Sheffield United side beat Queens Park Rangers away from home to close the gap with Leeds to three points at the top of the Championship table. Leeds’ 1-1 draw at home against West Brom means that the gap between the top two has again narrowed and some of the blow from Sheffield United’s defeat to the Whites last week has been softened. The Blades are keen to chase down Leeds until the last moments of the season and are determined not to let the Whites run away with it despite the predictions of Daniel Farke’s potentially winning the Championship on a canter. The win over QPR was also a good result to shut their naysayers down after they grew loud following their defeat to Leeds.
Leeds had a rare off day at Elland Road on Saturday when they only managed a 1-1 draw against West Brom to derail some of their recent momentum following a run of brilliant results.
Sheffield United took advantage of Leeds dropping points by picking up a win at QPR, which allowed them to reduce the Whites’ lead at the top to just three points.
Wilder’s mindgames on Leeds came to nothing when his side lost 3-1 at home against the Whites at Bramall Lane last week but the weekend has again turned it interesting at the top of the Championship table.
Leeds are again within Sheffield United’s grasp and the excitement in Wilder’s words was palpable as he brushed aside his defeat against the Championship toppers last week.
‘That defeat won’t define our season’ – Message for Leeds United from Chris Wilder
Chris Wilder and Sheffield United have spring on their steps again as they prepare to chase down Leeds in the remaining eleven games of the season.
The defeat to Leeds at home did bring forward some uncomfortable questions and he is still miffed at the way his team lost that game at Bramall Lane.
The Sheffield United boss conceded that it was disappointing not to get anything from that game even though his team played well against the Yorkshire giants.
However, Wilder insisted that defeat won’t define Sheffield United’s season. He is delighted at the way his team responded to that defeat by producing a brilliant performance against QPR this weekend.
“I’m delighted with the reaction from Monday night. We were all pretty down on Tuesday. To play as well as we did and not get anything from the game was quite difficult to take”, the Sheffield United boss was quoted as saying by the Yorkshire Evening Post.
“But we talked about it, it can’t define our season, and our reaction to the disappointment has been absolutely first class.
“We put everything into this game.”
Leeds must prepare for more barbs from Wilder for the rest of the season
If Leeds thought Chris Wilder and his team would become an afterthought following their 3-1 win at Bramall Lane, the Championship’s volatility struck again this weekend.
Leeds still have the advantage and have a three-point lead at the top but the Yorkshire giants need to prepare for more mind games from Wilder in the coming weeks.
Wilder was downbeat last week following the defeat to Leeds but the weekend’s results have again brought the excitement back in his voice for the rest of the season.
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The Sheffield United boss is an experienced manager and is aware that the Championship campaign will still have more twists and turns in the last eleven games.
He will continue to pile the pressure on Leeds at the business end of the season and check whether Daniel Farke’s side crack in the coming weeks.
Mind games and barbs from Wilder will likely become a norm for the next few months as the two Yorkshire rivals chase promotion to the Premier League.
