Sheffield United: How Paul Heckingbottom helped Blades bounce back to Premier League

Paul Heckingbottom has won 46 of his 80 matches since becoming permanent Blades boss in November 2021

On 17 April 2021 Sheffield United's relegation from the Premier League was confirmed with six games to spare.

It had been an utterly disastrous campaign for the Blades, whose final points tally of 23 was significantly boosted by winning three of their final six matches after they had already been demoted.

Under-23s boss Paul Heckingbottom had been placed in caretaker charge to oversee the final 10 league games, after Chris Wilder's position had become untenable amid off-field issues.

Two years on, the Blades are back in the big time after beating West Brom.

BBC Sport looks at how the former Barnsley and Leeds boss has turned things around in South Yorkshire - with the help of a Senegalese star and some familiar faces.

• Watch: 'Sheffield United - Blades of Glory?'

'This is what you play for'

Looking for an immediate return to the Premier League Sheffield United turned to Slavisa Jokanovic in the summer of 2021.

The Serb had won promotion to the top flight with both Watford and Fulham but, after a low-spending summer, cracks quickly appeared when he stated the club had not recruited the players he needed to play his preferred formation.

With the team in 16th it was not a huge surprise when he was sacked on 25 November, however, the announcement that Heckingbottom had been immediately installed as his long-term replacement was unexpected.

Some of the Bramall Lane faithful were unconvinced and Heckingbottom, with former Blades players Stuart McCall and Jack Lester brought on to the coaching staff, needed a fast start.

They duly got it with three wins from his first four games in permanent charge, including a 1-0 success at eventual title-winners Fulham.

A nine-game unbeaten run through January and February helped propel them into play-off contention and a 4-0 thumping of the champions on the final day secured a fifth-placed finish.

Although they ultimately lost to Nottingham Forest on penalties in the play-off semi-final their strong end to the season set them up perfectly for 2022-23, where they opened with seven wins from their first 10 league games.

Speaking in the post-match news conference on Wednesday Heckingbottom acknowledged that he had taken lessons from last season's near miss.

"I've learned to trust my gut now. The worst feeling in the world is feeling you need to make a change, not doing it and something happening," he said.

"The goal has always been promotion this season. Every decision has been made with the end goal in consideration.

"This is what you play for. You have to be motivated by winning. If you're in then you're all in. You have to go for it."

Going back to the future

Anel Ahmedhodzic (centre) scored Sheffield United's second goal in Wednesday's win over West Brom

Sheffield United's success under Wilder had been underpinned by their system of playing a back three, with the two outside centre-backs given license to go forward and join attacks.

Under Wilder they stormed to the League One title with 100 points, and then won promotion to the top flight after just two years in the second tier.

It is a system that Heckingbottom returned to and continues to deploy now.

Key to the success of the tactic this season has been Bosnia international Anel Ahmedhodzic.

The summer signing from Bordeaux, the only player they paid a fee for in the off-season, has fitted seamlessly into the novel style and scored five goals in all competitions, as well as carrying a threat with runs forward and crosses into the box.

It felt apt then that it was Ahmedhodzic who scored the second to confirm victory over West Brom on Wednesday to seal promotion.

Ndiaye the 'Star Boy'

Heckingbottom's first match in caretaker charge of the club, in March 2021, saw the rock-bottom Blades thumped 5-0 at Champions League chasing Leicester City.

Amid the doom and gloom surrounding the club at the time, few would have thought the young forward handed a debut off the bench for the final 11 minutes would go on to be pivotal in the team's revitalisation.

Iliman Ndiaye made the move to South Yorkshire from Boreham Wood in 2019 and spent time on loan at non-league Hyde United that season.

Three years on, he has represented Senegal at the 2022 Qatar World Cup and is one of the hottest properties in the EFL, with 13 goals and eight assists this season.

Add in a superb FA Cup winner against Tottenham, as the Blades eventually reached a semi-final against Manchester City, and you can see why the club refer to him as 'Star Boy'.

"He could be whatever he wants to be," strike partner Oli McBurnie told BBC Radio Sheffield's Blades Heaven podcast.

"Some of the things you see him do on the pitch now he's been doing in training for the past few years. His knowledge has grown so much under the coaches. Tactically he's perfect.

"It's easy for me, I just have to give it him and he'll dribble past everyone. He's a pleasure to play with. It's no surprise fans are drawn to him."

Come August Ndiaye will have a chance to show the Premier League just how much he's improved in the past two years.

'We'll give it a good go'

The off-field issues at Sheffield United have rumbled on for a number of years now.

Things have come to a head this season, with the club handed a transfer embargo in January for failing to keep up with repayments to another club, while a prospective takeover by Nigerian businessman Dozy Mmobuosi remains incomplete.

The embargo was lifted last Thursday, which should allow them some freedom to add to their squad at the end of the season.

The Blades had to lean on the loan market last summer and Manchester City midfield duo Tommy Doyle and James McAtee have both had big impacts at key points this campaign.

"Speaking to Anel, Tommy and Macca... This is what they came here for. Internally we were very open and adamant that nothing but promotion would be acceptable to us," Heckingbottom said.

"We had to speak like that because I wanted to see every conversation being about being better and trying to win.

"The expectation has been that we should be up there."

He added: "Next season we won't have that but our challenge will be different.

"We'll give it a good go. I don't know what the challenge will be because I don't know what we'll have [player wise].

"I'm not thinking past tonight."

The Blades' inability to be active in the transfer market means they have also had to continue to rely on players who have been at the club for a lifetime in modern football terms.

Of the 26 players to have started a league game for them this season, eight were part of the squad promoted to the Premier League in 2018-19.

On top of that, three of those eight - Chris Basham, John Fleck and skipper Billy Sharp - were all integral to the team that won 100 points on the way to the League One title back in 2016-17.

Staff have 'hid things' from players

With the ongoing uncertainty around the club's future and their inability to strengthen the team in January, it would have been easy for Heckingbottom to have looked for excuses this season.

Instead the 45-year-old created a siege mentality around the team, which allowed them to ride out two separate poor runs of form.

After their strong start they failed to win any of the subsequent six, but 10 wins from their following 12 league encounters meant they ended January behind only runaway leaders Burnley - and with a double-digit lead over the chasing pack.

A run of four defeats in six Championship games, including what could have been a highly damaging 3-1 home reverse by Middlesbrough, saw Boro cut the gap to the Blades to just three points going into the international break at the end of March.

But four wins in five matches since returning from the international break mean the Blades went into their final four matches needing just three points for promotion.

All of which makes it somewhat surprising that Heckingbottom was not included on the EFL's three-man shortlist for Championship manager of the season, missing out to winner Burnley boss Vincent Kompany and Coventry manager Mark Robins and Middlesbrough gaffer Michael Carrick.

"I kept saying it - the focus of the players has been top class but the focus of the staff has been even better because we've hid so much from the players," Heckingbottom said.

"I said that I wouldn't sit here and speak about excuses because I wouldn't let the players do that. Anyone can find a reason to fail. We've shown there's no reason you can't achieve regardless of what is thrown at you.

"I've proved a few things to myself."

A personal accolade might have been nice but you would imagine Heckingbottom will settle for ending the season as a Premier League manager.

A version of this article was first published on 20 April.