How Wilder's 'quite radical' tactical changes have reaped rewards

Ben Meakin, BladesPod

What a difference a week makes... or should that be what a difference Chris Wilder has made?

United were on their knees last Saturday after a 5-0 humbling at previously bottom Burnley, with the players looking out of energy, confidence and ideas.

Enter the returning Wilder, and suddenly the Blades have looked competitive again, staying in the game until the 94th minute against leaders Liverpool and then putting in their best 90 minutes of the season in the win over Brentford.

I am not one for getting carried away with a tight win over a mid-table team shorn of its best attacking talent, and there is a reason that the phrase 'new manager bounce' exists. However, Wilder has made immediate, quite radical (based on his previous stint as boss) tactical changes that have reaped rewards.

First, he broke up the unproductive midfield pairing of Oliver Norwood and Vinicius Souza, which many fans had been crying out for for weeks. Souza instantly looks better as the main defensive midfielder, while Gus Hamer has finally got to play as the number eight where he had so much success with Coventry City.

Wilder also ditched the 3-5-2 formation that he and predecessor Paul Heckingbottom had relied on so much in the past - opting for a bolder 4-3-3.

Another oft-cited criticism of Wilder’s previous tenure was an apparent unwillingness to lean on young talent - yet here he immediately threw the energetic Andre Brooks in for his first senior league starts, and brought on teenager Sydie Peck for a hard-running league debut late on.

Upon rejoining, Wilder claimed that United are "getting him at his best", suggesting some self-reflection has taken place for the way it ended with the Blades two and a half years ago.

It would have been easy to dismiss that as merely a nice soundbite for the fans from a new boss, but Wilder’s early actions speak just as loudly as those words.