Sheffield United: Chris Wilder will have mixed feelings about Leeds, Middlesbrough double-header - View | OneFootball

Sheffield United face back-to-back away games against Leeds United and Middlesbrough in October.

It has been an excellent start to the season for Sheffield United in the Championship.

Sheffield United were relegated from the Premier League last season after just one year in the top flight, but they have recovered well from that humiliation, and they look in a strong position to bounce back at the first attempt.

Despite enduring a slow start to the transfer window amid ongoing takeover uncertainty, it was a busy summer at Bramall Lane with 10 new signings arriving, including a number of high-profile additions.

On the pitch, the Blades have made an impressive start to life back in the Championship, and they currently sit eighth in the table after picking up eight points from their opening four games - they would be even higher had they not received a two-point deduction.

Of course, Wilder will be focusing on one game at a time in his pursuit of promotion, but the fact that United face back-to-back away games against Leeds United and Middlesbrough in October will not have gone unnoticed by the 56-year-old, and those fixtures have taken on extra significance after recent events.

Leeds signed defender Jayden Bogle from the Blades for a reported fee of around £5 million in July, and they made an audacious attempt to sign another of Wilder's star men late in the transfer window.

The Whites initially had a £13 million bid rejected for midfielder Gustavo Hamer before apparently returning with a second offer of £10 million plus striker Joel Piroe, but that was also turned down.

Hamer has been excellent for United this season, scoring two goals and providing one assist in six appearances, and Wilder made it clear that he was not impressed with what he believed was a derisory offer from Leeds for the 27-year-old.

"With Gus, we talked about it from a Leeds point of view and what they did," Wilder told The Star last month.

"I will always be honest with you and you know what I thought about it. They sold two players for £40m each [Archie Gray and Georginio Rutter] and ridiculously low-balled us for our best player. I’m not here to appease anyone up the road, I’m here for Sheffield United Football Club and its best interests. The number was ridiculously low."

Wilder's comments have added extra animosity to what was already set to be a fiery clash on Saturday 18th October, but he will feel that he was simply defending his club from an insulting bid for one of their key players, and he will no doubt be relishing the prospect of coming away from Elland Road with three points.

Chris Wilder will receive frosty Middlesbrough reception

Just five days after the game against Leeds, Wilder and his side make the trip to face his former club Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium, but it is a reunion he may not be looking forward to.

Wilder was appointed as Boro manager in November 2021, replacing Neil Warnock, and he made a big impact in the early stages of his tenure.

Boro quickly emerged as serious play-off contenders after a significant upturn in form under Wilder, and he also oversaw a penalty shoot-out win at Manchester United and a memorable 1-0 home victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup.

However, Wilder's time on Teesside started to turn sour after speculation linking him with the vacant managerial position at Burnley emerged in April 2022, and his refusal to shut down the rumours was frustrating for many Boro supporters.

Wilder initially stated that "nobody knows what is around the corner" when asked about the prospect of a move to Turf Moor, accusing the reporter asking him the question of wanting him to "say something daft", and while he did insist he was committed to the club later that week, the damage had already been done.

Boro missed out on the play-offs as they finished seventh in the table in the 2021-22 season, and after a poor start to the following campaign, Wilder was sacked in October 2022 with the club sitting in the relegation zone.

Addressing the Burnley saga in an interview with The Telegraph in February 2023, Wilder admitted that "I should have shut it down", but he said that it was "quite lazy to say that I took my eye off the ball or anything like that", and he insisted that he left his successor Michael Carrick a strong platform to build on.

With Carrick at the helm, Boro have moved on from the toxic end to Wilder's time at the club, but he is unlikely to ever be fully forgiven by supporters, and that will be reflected in the reception he receives when he returns to Riverside Stadium.

The Blades have plenty of important games to come over the course of the next month, but Wilder will surely be looking ahead to the consecutive away games against Leeds and Boro in October with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.