It was Sam Allardyce in 2012, then in charge of West Ham, who infamously said he could have been managing a Champions League club had his surname been “Allardici”. At the EFL awards in April, when Chris Wilder walked away with the manager of the year prize, the compere Colin Murray made a similar joke, stating the straight-talking Sheffield United manager would no doubt be in the conversation for the Paris Saint-Germain job if he had a more exotic name. On stage Billy Sharp, a good sport and an even better striker, played along.

It was put to Sharp, the captain, that nobody expected too much from a team with a modest Championship budget after finishing 10th last season. Awards season can often feel premature but Wilder is undoubtedly the manager of the year. With a game to play, his team could beat Norwich to the title.

Sheffield United ready for a Premier League walk on the Wilder side | John Ashdown Read more

So, where did the confidence for such an unforgettable campaign stem from? “Everybody in our changing room,” Sharp replied, deadpan. “The belief was there, we were the ones saying that we could go one step further than last season, when we fell away around March. The gaffer has been driving us for the last three seasons since he has been in charge and, hopefully, we can get promotion before he goes to PSG …”

For Wilder, though, it does not get better than this. Born in Stocksbridge and made in Sheffield, Wilder, who has a tattoo of the club crest, has a gallon of Yorkshire grit. Bramall Lane is home; it is where he stood on the Kop as a kid, where he became friends with Paul Heaton, the Beautiful South frontman; where he was a ballboy and later played as a full-back after being released by Southampton, where he met Alan Knill – his assistant at Sheffield United – in his mid-teens. “When you’re dealing with boys, the first thing you look at is their attitude and Chris’s was absolutely fantastic,” says Dave Merrington, the former Southampton youth team manager. “He listened, applied himself and he wanted to win.”

It was after six years in charge of Halifax Town that Wilder first worked alongside Knill, at Bury in 2008 – but as a No 2. “I think it was a breather for him, getting out of managing and doing something different and not making all the decisions like he likes to do,” Knill says. “It kind of cleared his head and allowed him to refocus. I knew one day he was going to go back in; he is a natural manager. He just wants to organise everything. If there were a load of tables and chairs in a room, he would sort them out so they were right. Chris loves to manage and I love to coach.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Chris Wilder joins his Sheffield United players in celebrating promotion to the Premier League. Photograph: Rogan/JMP/Rex/Shutterstock

When Wilder swapped Oxford, flying high in League Two for the side rock bottom of the same division in 2014, Knill went with him. They hoisted Northampton to promotion inside two seasons, but the pair are far from inseparable. “We went to the Manchester derby last week; I went to pick him up,” Knill explains. “And I had to ask him for his postcode. It was the first time I had been to his house – I think he has lived there two years. We are friends but we don’t go out for drinks. We have a life together where we go to work and it has been pretty amazing. You just have to pinch yourself and say: ‘Wow, how did we get here?’”

Those who have worked with Wilder (who has taken sides up from the ninth, fifth, fourth, third and second tiers) describe a fiercely competitive character with high standards. “People have to graft,” Wilder said. “I don’t ask. They have to.”

His first taste of management was an overwhelming success, too: he won the quadruple inside 27 weeks at Alfreton Town before moving to Halifax. On Fridays at Oxford, youth players were tasked with typing up a dossier on the opposition, detailing man-marking instructions and set-play routines. Sometimes Wilder would send it back – apostrophes were missing or tabs incorrectly formatted.

When he walked into Oxford 11 years ago, we were mid-table in the Conference. He's had four promotions since. Incredible

“He made sure his teams were prepared and was not necessarily too worried about feelings,” says Kelvin Thomas, who interviewed Wilder for the Oxford job, before working with him as Northampton chairman. “It was more about just getting the job done. He has a steely confidence in his decision making that allows him to get the best out of the players that he has. When he walked into Oxford 11 years ago, we were mid-table in the Conference. He has had four promotions since. It is incredible.”

Wilder is hot on timekeeping and big on team spirit. “We already had the League Two title sewn up with Northampton and we trained on the pitch on the Wednesday, doing a bit of team shape before the last day of the season that Saturday,” recalls Danny Rose, who also played under Wilder at Oxford. “After that session we were all sat in the centre circle with our tops off – it was a boiling hot day – and he wheeled out a big crate of beers. He said: ‘Lads, we have obviously achieved what we set out to. Let’s just enjoy this moment now.’”

Throughout this season Wilder said his side “shouldn’t have been anywhere near it” but nobody deserves “it” more than him. Long before John Egan delivered his infectious ditty and prior to the promotion party hitting full swing last Sunday, an emotional Wilder, who labelled the top flight a “champagne division”, had to fight back tears.

“I think it is life-changing for everybody. We are going to have some unbelievable experiences,” he said. “When the fixtures come out, we will have a little look and really rub our hands together because we’re back in the big time.”

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Talking points



• Luton and Barnsley have sealed promotion but the picture at the bottom of League One is as clear as mud with a game to go. Three points separate five teams, including Plymouth and Scunthorpe, who meet at Home Park on Saturday. AFC Wimbledon were seven points from safety when Wally Downes took over in December but they sit two points above the relegation zone with a trip to relegated Bradford.

• Leyton Orient are back in the Football League but who will join them? The National League play-offs begin on Wednesday, with the winner of AFC Fylde v Harrogate set to take on Solihull Moors, while the winner of Eastleigh v Wrexham will play Salford City. The final is on 11 May.

• Dean Smith has said he plans to take John McGinn out of the firing line against Norwich on Sunday. With Aston Villa’s play-off place secured and the midfielder a booking from a three-match ban, the decision is a no-brainer.

• Will Swansea ensure a three-way fight for sixth place goes to the final day? If Derby fail to win in Wales on Wednesday, Bristol City and Middlesbrough could squeeze into the play-offs on Sunday, when Derby host West Brom, Boro take on Rotherham and Bristol City travel to Hull.