"Foolish" - Simon Jordan slams Sheffield United owners for "embarrassing" Chris Wilder U-turn | OneFootball

Simon Jordan has given his reaction to Chris Wilder's return to Sheffield United, less than three months after his shock exit.

Former Crystal Palace owner and talkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan believes the decision to bring former manager Chris Wilder back to the club is embarrassing for the Sheffield United board.

After losing to Sunderland in last season's play-off final, Sheffield United made the controversial call to part company with Wilder back in June, with disagreements over the club's new data-driven recruitment model believed to have been one of the main factors behind his exit.

Wilder was replaced by Ruben Selles, who only narrowly kept Hull City in the Championship last season, but his appointment backfired spectacularly, and the Spaniard was sacked on Sunday after losing all of his six games in charge in all competitions, with his side scoring just two goals and conceding 14 during that time.

Speculation about a shock return for Wilder began to gather pace over the weekend, and just 89 days after his summer departure, Wilder was appointed Blades manager for a third time on Monday, with the 57-year-old signing a contract until the summer of 2027.

In a statement, the United board said that Wilder has demonstrated "proven leadership" and has an "unparalleled understanding" of the club, and they insisted they were "confident he is the right person to restore momentum, unite the squad and supporters, and deliver the results necessary to achieve our objectives this season".

The Blades currently sit bottom of the table, and they are the only team in the division who are yet to pick up a point this season, but Wilder will be hoping to change that when he takes charge for the first time in his third spell against Charlton Athletic at Bramall Lane on Saturday.

Simon Jordan slams Sheffield United owners as Chris Wilder makes Bramall Lane return

When asked for his reaction to Wilder's return to Sheffield United, Jordan claimed that the dramatic U-turn is a humiliating look for the club's board, and he insisted that he should not have been replaced by Selles in the first place after coming so close to delivering promotion last season.

"My views were predicated upon one set of circumstances, and I think they were justified," Jordan said on talkSPORT.

"I don't carry them forward in perpetuity, and if I've got new information, I'll react to it.

"I think he's done a decent job most of the time he's been at Sheffield United.

"I didn't think it was particularly fair that he lost his job at the end of the summer.

"I think it's quite embarrassing for the ownership because it's not as if you've gotten someone different.

"You've gone back to someone who you said you didn't fancy anymore because he didn't fit the profile of a progressive manager or they wanted to be data driven or whatever the hell they thought they were doing.

"They brought somebody in who they thought was going to do a better job than him, and after five minutes of them being here, they've gone back to him.

"i hope he's held their feet to the fire.

"I'm always the first person to defend the owners, but in this instance, I think he can consider himself harshly treated, and I think they're lucky he's a Sheffield United fan and feels so motivated to go back there."

"I know Sheffield United choked a bit at the end of the season and let themselves down and sort of imploded a little bit, but I felt Chris still had the zeitgeist and still had the werewithal," Jordan continued.

"If you're getting 90 points, what are you doing firing the manager? What is it that he did wrong?

"I know Ruben Selles speaks well, but what are you doing bringing Ruben Selles in? What is he going to do?

"If you want someone to do something, you get someone who's done it previously.

"Wilder has taken them up previously, he put them in the Premier League and kept them there for a season, he made them a competitive side and almost got them promoted again, what would you think you would be fixing?

"I think it makes them look rather foolish.

"Does it make them brave to go back? It makes them realise the error of their ways, I suspect."

Sheffield United supporters will have mixed emotions after Chris Wilder comeback

The decision to replace Wilder with Selles in the summer proved to be a big mistake, and some will argue that the Sheffield United board should be given credit for acting quickly and admitting they got it wrong, rather than persisting with an appointment that was clearly not working.

However, it always looked like a reckless and unnecessary gamble to replace a popular manager in Wilder with a manager who was unproven at Championship level in Selles, and while they will be delighted that he has returned, Blades supporters will likely still have concerns about the lack of football knowledge on the board.

With Wilder now back at the helm, it would be no surprise to see United climb the table over the coming months, but it could be tough for him to achieve promotion this season after the club's nightmare start under Selles.