Sheff Utd can decide direction of season - Wilder

Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder says it is up to his side how their unexpected season unfolds after cruising to victory in the Steel City derby.

Wilder's side were far too good for bottom side Sheffield Wednesday as the Blades claimed a 3-0 win in a one-sided affair on Sunday.

Although United remain in the Championship relegation zone, one point adrift of safety, there is a feeling last season's beaten play-off finalists could yet challenge at the top end of the division.

"We have to decide the direction of our journey," Wilder told BBC Radio Sheffield.

"If we take a step back then we are going to get hurt but if we are on-it and we use the work that we have done... it's a good group.

"I think it was game-on for us today. Maybe some people didn't realise how good we could be and we had to prove that.

"I think the football people will walk away saying we're a decent side and that if we can put it together we'll start climbing the table.

"Opinions and views are opinions and views - we've got to go and do the business and make it happen."

United have made a record-breaking start to the campaign - in an unwanted sense.

No team in second-tier history has ever had a bigger drop-off in points across the first 15 games of a campaign than their hefty deficit of 23 from last season.

The Blades had accrued 33 points by that stage last term - but began Sunday's derby on just 10.

They have lost 11 league games already, one more than in the whole of last season.

Since the Football League rebrand in 2004, no team has ever finished above 14th after winning just 10 points from 15 matches.

Last year's Championship player of the season Gustavo Hamer returned from injury to make a late substitute appearance at Hillsborough, while former Leeds striker Patrick Bamford made his debut after joining last week - and Wilder is happy his group is getting stronger.

"From my point of view, the standard of training when Gus, Oli Arblaster [who has been out for a year with an anterior cruciate ligament injury] and Tahith Chong is there is key," he said.

"To get arguably one of the best players in the division back among us is a huge boost. If we can keep everyone fit and healthy, I'd like to think we'll have more days like today."

Sterner tests than this, starting with the visit of Portsmouth to Bramall Lane on Wednesday, lie ahead but with players coming back to fitness, a turnaround in fortunes is far from out of the question for a team who won 92 points last season.

Sheffield Wednesday boss Henrik Pedersen conceded his team were beaten by the better side.

Their 12-point penalty for entering administration after a chaotic and controversial end to Dejphon Chansiri's reign as owner means they are 18 points adrift of safety.

With further deductions possible, they are almost certainly League One bound.

However, there was good news pre-match when administrator Kris Wigfield said he was "excited" about possible successors of Chansiri.

"The new owner will know exactly what needs to be sorted out both short term and long term," Wigfield told BBC Radio Sheffield.

"We have had a lot of experts who have been helping with that plan who have been giving their time for free, a lot of them Wednesday fans.

"We have had some offers and we are expecting two more offers. We are optimistic - as a Wednesday fan myself, I am excited about the people who have made those bids."