Sheffield United have been a breath of fresh air in the top flight this season. The Blades have sliced through their opposition, and are currently mixing it with the big boys in the Premier League's top half.
But their progress has been thwarted by the outbreak of the coronavirus, which has forced the suspension of all football across Europe. And with very little idea as to how the final outcome of the campaign will ultimately be decided, many managers and club owners have had their say over what should come next.
And one man who has been very vocal over the future of the 2019/20 campaign is Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder, who has guided his side to their lofty seventh spot thus far. The 52-year-old spoke openly and honestly with the Daily Mail, admitting that in his opinion 'we have to finish the season, however long it takes'.
"At first, I didn’t want to play the remaining games behind closed doors but my point of view now is that, if that is what it has to be in order to finish the season, then that is what it has to be.
"There’s no compromise in this. We have to finish the season, however long it takes.
"The idea of freezing positions as they are now is not for me, even though you look at the table and think it wouldn’t be a bad result for this club from a selfish point of view."
Wilder also encouraged his fellow football colleagues to 'come out' of their 'selfish point of view', and accept that no matter how the league table appears at present, it could look much different when all the fixtures have been completed.
"Everyone will look at it from a selfish point of view and they have to come out of that. The Premier League season is a race. It is 38 games. No matter how many points somebody is ahead or how many points somebody is behind, it’s sport and anything can happen.
"You go through the history of sport, from Devon Loch falling near the end of the Grand National to a collapse by a golfer after 16 holes, or a cricket batting collapse or whatever.
"Right the way through, there are tales of people cantering to the finishing line and not getting over it. It’s the most prestigious league in the world. To finish it would be the right thing to do."
The Sheffield United coach has taken his Premier League newcomers to the brink of European football - and he is not ready to stop their ascent with ten games still to play. Wilder insisted that they 'are not setting targets' but the Blades are determined to win as many of their remaining matches as possible.
"At the end of it, the race is done and you finish in your rightful position. And you do it through the summer and the autumn and the winter and the spring and that is why this is the ultimate test."
Source: 90min
