The important challenge Chris Wilder has set his Sheffield United players ahead of their visit to Chelsea

United enter Saturday’s game against Chelsea without a win since finishing ninth last term, having lost six and drawn one of their last seven games.

Although Wilder has chosen to place a protective arm around his players in recent weeks, insisting their points tally does not reflect performances, he admitted everyone associated with United must reflect upon the reasons behind their slow start to the new campaign.

“We’ve got a psychologist, but he can’t go out and play the game,” Wilder said, outlining the measures he is employing to try and and replenish confidence levels ahead if the visit to Stamford Bridge. “I’ve got to say, I never needed one when I was playing and they didn’t need one last season either, did they.

“But we are a modern thinking football club and we’ll give them all the help they need. It has also got to come from within, though.”

As The Star revealed earlier this year, United invited Steve Sylvester, a former professional cricketer and one of the world’s most respected sports psychologists, to help them overcome the challenge of competing behind closed doors after social distancing measures imposed in response to the Covid-19 pandemic saw supporters banned from stadia. Sylvester, who was also a visible presence at the Steelphalt Academy during United’s two promotions under Wilder, is also known to have worked closely with several members of Wilder’s squad since then - some of whom are recovering from injury.

“It’ll come around again for players, they’ll go through a poor period of results again,” Wilder said. “So they have to dig a little bit deeper and show that bit of belief not to give the ball away.

“There’s always four parts to the game - tactical, mental, physical and technical. We look at all four.

“To survive in this division, you have to overcome the bad periods and get through them.”

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