Sheffield United eyeing up ex-Wolves manager & Spanish coach as Chris Wilder sack talk rumbles on | OneFootball

Targets have been identified by the Blades hierarchy with Wilder's future at the club still very much up in the air

Sheffield United have identified both Gary O'Neil and Ruben Selles as successors for manager Chris Wilder this summer, should he exit the club after talks over his future.

Despite being in a promising position for much of the 2024-25 Championship season when it came to the automatic promotion race, Wilder and the Blades lost out to both Leeds United and Burnley, and were then downed by Sunderland in the play-off final at Wembley.

It's since been a number of weeks after the disappointment in the capital, but news emerged earlier this week that Wilder's job was under threat and relatively new owners COH Sports were meeting to discuss the future of the 57-year-old, with John Percy of The Telegraph reporting at the time that they were "expected" to part ways with the boyhood United fan.

Gary O'Neil & Ruben Selles on Sheffield United radar to become new head coach

A few days on from the Wilder sack claims, no announcement has been made on whether he still has a job or not at Bramall Lane, but it has now emerged that there are two coaches in particular who are on the hierarchy's radar.

According to Alan Nixon of The Sun, one of the names well and truly in the frame is Gary O'Neil, who has been out of work since December 2024 after being sacked by Wolves.

The 42-year-old has only ever managed in the Premier League after first taking the Bournemouth job in August 2022 following Scott Parker's dismissal, leading them to top flight safety in the 2022-23 season before being replaced by Andoni Iraola two summers ago.

He headed to Molineux a few months later and achieved a 14th-placed finish in his first top flight season with the Midlands outfit, but was dispensed of four months into last season, and has stayed on the sidelines since waiting for his next role.

Joining O'Neil on United's radar is Ruben Selles, who has not long been unemployed himself following his somewhat harsh sacking as Hull City manager by owner Acun Ilicali.

Having arrived at the Tigers - who were bottom of the Championship - last December from Reading, Selles guided City to safety on the final day of the season, only to see himself axed after less than six months in charge, with the job since going to Bosnian coach Sergej Jakirović.

Whilst O'Neil tops the Sheffield United list, as per Nixon, Selles is said to be a "live candidate" for the job, should Wilder's exit be confirmed anytime soon.

Chris Wilder clarity is needed from Sheffield United ASAP so they can plan for the future

Given it has been a few days since the reports of Wilder's future being at risk emerged, the silence ever since has been somewhat deafening.

Wilder was only handed a new long-term contract in January at Bramall Lane until 2028, so it would be a quick u-turn to dispense of his services four-and-a-half months later, but if he cannot get to grips with the usage of AI-based data analytics for some of the club's transfers, then it may be for the best if both parties go in a different direction.

Now, names being linked with the job when it is not officially vacant makes it look like Wilder's departure is a formality - fans of the club could do with knowing what is going on now instead of gossip.

For main COH Sports chiefs Steve Rosen and Helmy Eltoukhy though, they need to strike a fine balance between their new transfer strategy and giving whoever the manager is this coming season what he wants, because the AI-based methods being the be-all and end-all for incoming deals may not work out so well.