da bet nacional：
da brwin： Few would have thought that in recent months Sheffield United supporters would be singing the name of an ex-Wednesday player and manager with such joy.
May 2011 now appears to be a distant memory in the minds of Blades supporters. Wilson’s appointment was met with such hostility from the Blades support, that some took it upon themselves to stage a protest in the Bramall Lane car park in just a matter of hours. Few could have been blamed for predicting that chairman Kevin McCabe’s appointment was a disaster from the go.
However, football is a fickle game, and nine months on, Wilson remains at the helm and seems to have won the majority, if not all, the Blades support over. He has stabilised the club after what was such a torrid 2010/2011 season in the Championship, which saw United go through four different managers; Kevin Blackwell, Gary Speed, John Carver, and lastly Micky Adams.
Wilson had an entire summer to try and rebuild a thread-bare squad on a shoestring budget. He started with what he knew, picking up out of contract Lescinel Jean-Francois, previously of Swindon – the team Wilson had been relegated with the previous season. As a left back, Jean-Francois was a sturdy addition, to what had been an extremely leaky defence in the Championship. Wilson then opted for winger Ryan Flynn from Falkirk. But, as the season has progressed Flynn has failed to nail down a regular first team spot, losing out to more experienced players in the shapes of Stephen Quinn and Lee Williamson.
However, Wilson’s most noticeable and arguably most successful signing has been Kevin McDonald, who at the considerably young age of 23 has been at quite a few clubs previous to the Blades – representing quite a gamble. A shaky beginning slowly started to turn into what seems an extremely shrewd move on Wilson’s part. McDonald now seems to be the player United can simply not play without. His composure on the ball and eye for a pass has not been seen at Bramall Lane since Stuart McCall, and at the age of 23 McDonald is surely now the man United needs to build their team around. Most noticeable was the recent Steel City derby, where McDonald was sidelined due to a hamstring injury, picked up in the victory over Preston only the week before. The extent of his absence was clear for all to see as the game wore on, as Wednesday came into the game more, United looked edgy, eventually resorting to long ball. Few would disagree that had McDonald played, the outcome of the game, and possibly the candidate for second place, would have been over.
It is not just the players that Wilson has brought in that has impressed United supporters; but also the players that he has been able to keep hold of, with thanks also going to the chairman for deciding not to sell. It has been clear to see that the performances of Ched Evans have been on the up all season. In his first two seasons at the Lane, Evans managed a meagre 13 goals, with many supporters believing we had paid over-the-odds for the promising youngster from Manchester City. However, this season Ched has already found the back of the net 20 times in League and Cup. Few would have blamed him had his mind been elsewhere this season with a court case still looming, but determination, coupled with what seems to be fantastic man-management on Wilson’s part, has turned him into the striker defences hate in League One. Put him alongside Beattie, Cresswell, or Hoskins, and it is clear to see United have a strike force most Championship sides would cast envious eyes upon.
However, in recent weeks United have stuttered, defeat against rivals Wednesdays, then a scrappy victory over Scunthorpe, concluding with a second half capitulation against Oldham, which now sees United defence woefully thin and exposed thanks to two second-half dismissals for Matty Lowton and Harry Maguire. The coming week will be key for United, with three away games on the spin at Walsall, Brentford, and Colchester, needing to take almost maximum points to maintain the gap. They say in football it is easier to chase than be chased, and with Charlton so far out of sight, the Blades are now the team the chasing pack have their sights set upon. In the coming weeks Wilson will have to pull the squad together if they are going to hold on to second place, and all Blades fans will be hoping that all the good work carried out up to now will not be undone.
By Sheffield United blogger Will Ollett
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