Chris Wilder took responsibility for a difficult Sheffield United performance, but was full of praise for the way his team came out of it with a 2-0 win.
The Blades extended their lead at the top of the table thanks to Ryan One’s goal and replacement Kieffer Moore’s 88th-minute penalty. The scoreline favored the hosts over relegation-threatened Plymouth Argyle.
In retrospect, Wilder felt he could have freshened up his injury-plagued team more, but he compensated with a half-time formation change from 4-2-3-1 to 3-4-2-1, which made the Blades appear much sharper.
“I think it shows you when we miss a couple of players it really does stretch us and then we’ve got Kieffer coming on who really should have another week-and-a-half of training under his belt, Tom Davies we should be easing back into first-team football,” according to Wilder.
“To play the three games we did in a ludicrous schedule, to play Sunday afternoon away (at West Bromwich Albion), Wednesday night in London, come back early and play Saturday, we’re being punished for winning football games.
“I don’t think that was right and it stretched some of our younger boys because it’s the first time the young boys will have played three games in six days at the top end of the Championship so it’s a good result for us, really good because they were better. I think we’ve had to work hard, myself, Al, and the coaches right through the game and especially at half-time changing shape because they bounced it out too easily. They got Brendan Galloway out too easily.”
“We were asking a young 18-year-old (Ryan One) to do a man’s job on his (full) debut.”
Despite the scoreline, Wilder felt Plymouth were the superior team in the first half, with midfielder Adam Randell seeing too much of the ball.
“I’ve got to give credit for Wayne (Rooney) and his coaching staff and (new assistant manager) Micky Phelan because they were the better side in the first half, without a shadow of doubt,” Wilder said. “I blame myself; we could have made more changes, but I wanted that team to go again.
“Maybe I should have updated it, so the 57-year-old manager will have to learn something new.
“We couldn’t get the press right; we couldn’t get onto their six (Randell); our sixes were too stretched; we didn’t get up the pitch enough; and when we broke it up, their press outperformed ours; we turned it over too many times.
“Our quality wasn’t great, but we’re here to support the players as coaches and managers, so going man for man and leaping on their six, I think we made it a little more difficult for them to get out and break our press.
“We were better in the second half. I’m not saying we generated clear-cut chances, and it should have been two, three, and four, but we felt much more at ease but not safe until we got the penalty.
“We were never unbelievably comfortable because Michael (Cooper)’s had to make a save (from Ryan Hardie).”
Plymouth manager Rooney praised his team’s performance as well as the hosts’ fighting spirit.
“I didn’t think we deserved to lose, but Sheffield United is a very efficient team,” remarked the former England captain. “(They were) good in both boxes, and that was what decided the game.
“We controlled a long amount of the game but then squandered opportunities. Performance was good, but the outcomes were disappointing.
“I believed we were the better team in the second period as well.
“We were optimistic and believed we could dominate the game, and that’s how it transpired. Unfortunately, we conceded from a set piece, a nice finish from the lad, and were unable to equalise.
“I think we deserved something from the game, but that’s football, and that’s what Sheffield United has done this season. So certainly, you must give them credit as well; that is what they do.
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