Is Promotion Back to the Premier League Still A Realistic Target For Sheffield United? | OneFootball

Sheffield United’s mission to bounce straight back to the Premier League this season has quickly turned into a nightmare.

In what was quite a chaotic summer at the football club, in terms of a controversial managerial change which saw Chris Wilder replaced by inexperienced Championship manager Ruben Selles, the Blades well and truly put themselves behind the black ball even before a ball was kicked.

The Lack of Preparation And Delayed Recruitment Has Cost Sheffield United

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 20: Isaac Olaofe of Charlton Athletic scores his team’s first goal during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield United and Charlton Athletic at Bramall Lane on September 20, 2025 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Jess Hornby/Getty Images)

While some supporters had no issues with the sacking of Wilder, many had problems with the way COH Sports handled the summer as a whole. The American consortium wanted their own manager (Selles), however, they failed to back their man in the summer which is what made Unitedites frustrated by the board.

The Blades began the campaign by fielding just one natural centre-back, Tyler Bindon, who was making his Championship debut. Alongside him was Rhys Norrington-Davies, a left-back, who had barely kicked a ball in anger for the Blades in 12 months due to injury troubles. This alone summed up Sheffield United’s lack of recruitment planning in pre-season.

Eventually, the board sanctioned a plethora of new signings in the final week of the transfer window. But by this point, the damage had already been done to the squad in terms of confidence.

The Spaniard failed to register a single point in his first five league matches, as United looked disjointed, passive, and completely devoid of confidence. By early September, the board dismissed Selles off the back of a 5-0 defeat away at Ipswich Town and made the shock decision to bring Wilder back less than 100 days after his original exit.

Can Chris Wilder Spark Life Back Into the Blades?

Wilder’s return to Bramall Lane so far has not seen much of an improvement across the first four matches, according to key performance metrics provided by Opta. That being said, this current international break has provided an opportunity for the players to work on sharpness, attacking patterns and defensive structure, something they’ve massively lacked in the nine league games they’ve played thus far.

The Blades were one of the pre-season favourites to win promotion to the top-flight, but that objective seems a long way away at this stage. With just three points on the board in October, Wilder is tasked with trying to drag his boyhood football club out of the relegation zone and up the Championship table, and it could be a while before supporters can start thinking about purchasing Premier League tickets once more.