Wilder Stresses Significance of Steel City Derby for Sheffield United

Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder will host Sheffield Wednesday counterpart Danny Rohl this Sunday in the first Steel City derby in more than five years. Wilder stated that his team will not be apprehensive about losing when they face their main rivals, Sheffield Wednesday. The two Steel City clubs last competed against each other in March 2019, which ended in a goalless draw. Chris Wilder, a lifelong supporter of the Blades, is currently in his second tenure managing United and has remained undefeated in his four prior derby matches against the Owls. “We can’t let the game pass us by. We understand what this can do for a season and how important it is for us,” he informed BBC Radio Sheffield. He added, “We have a chance of going top of the league if things go for us over the weekend and extending our outstanding home record.” “I’ve lived in this city most of my life and I know what this means to the man in the street,” Wilder stated. He further commented, “Having been brought up in and witnessed it close hand, not as a player unfortunately – one of my biggest regrets, it’s swung one way and then the other through the years.” “It’s unpredictable, it’s passionate and it’s important to everybody,” he concluded. Sheffield United, known as the Blades, have commenced the season strongly following their relegation from the Premier League last season. They have secured victories in their last five home matches, keeping clean sheets in all of them. Wilder indicated that maintaining composure would be crucial. The 57-year-old added, “You’ve got to get the balance right. I’m emotionally tied in to it but there’s a lot of tactical preparation that needs to go into it.” “Everyone will try and pick up on little bits like who has played in one before and who hasn’t, he’s from Sheffield and he’s from Germany… It’s all talk but the main event is at 12:30 on Sunday,” he noted. He concluded, “You’ve got to be emotionally balanced about it.” Sheffield United is facing injury concerns regarding striker Kieffer Moore, who has a calf issue, and forward Rhian Brewster. Moore entered Tuesday’s match against Bristol City as a substitute but was forced to leave the field after 15 minutes, while Brewster has been absent from the last two fixtures. Sheffield Wednesday may field the identical starting eleven that secured their 2-0 victory against Norwich City on Tuesday. Owls manager Danny Rohl will participate in his inaugural derby match since assuming leadership at Hillsborough in October 2023. He was instrumental in Wednesday avoiding relegation to League One, achieving this with a last-day win at Sunderland in May, and mentioned that the possibility of a derby this season was a topic of immediate conversation thereafter. “Last season when we stayed in the league everyone spoke immediately about the derby. It was their first reaction,” he recounted to BBC Radio Sheffield. “It’s a gap of five years since we last played and they have been more up than us since then but now we have this challenge on the same level,” Rohl added. Wednesday has not secured a derby win at Bramall Lane since 2009 and has been unable to defeat their cross-city adversaries since 2012. Rohl, aged 35, affirmed that his team would commit “everything” to conclude that winless streak on Sunday. “We can give our supporters a big present,” he stated. “They spend all their money for the tickets and travelling for us and we can not forget what it means to them,” he continued. “This is a big passion and we will do everything to give them a good Sunday,” Rohl concluded.