Former Leeds United captain Rio Ferdinand is glad Sheffield United have been promoted ahead of the Whites.
Barring a highly unlikely goal swing, the Blades have effectively earned their place in the Premier League next season.
It came following their 2-0 victory over Ipswich Town, which puts them six points ahead of Leeds with one match left to play.
Ferdinand’s former team host Aston Villa today. Yet even if they win both of their remaining matches, the Blades’ far superior goal difference makes it almost impossible for them to be caught.
Ferdinand spent two years at Elland Road, skippering the side, before being signed by Manchester United in 2002.
Despite his connections to the Whites, the former defender turned pundit is actually happier Chris Wilder’s team have been promoted.
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“I’d love to see Leeds in the Premier League. Their fan base, the passion they’ve got, they’d be a great addition. It’s where they should be. I had a great time there, so it’d be fantastic for me to see them there,” Ferdinand told JOE.
“I’d like them to go up through the play-offs, because my mate (Chris Wilder) is the manager of Sheffield United so I’d like him to go up, but Leeds to go up through the play-offs.”
Wilder’s revolution
It’s 12 years since the Blades were last in the top flight of English football. Since then they have since been relegated again, spending six years languishing in League One.
That was until Wilder, a Sheffield lad who played for the club, was appointed as boss in the summer of 2016. The 51-year-old was on the back of guiding Northampton Town to the League Two title with 99 points. Prior to that he had taken Oxford United out of the Conference.
In Wilder’s first season in charge, the Blades won League One with 100 points. In their first back in the Championship they finished 10th.
Now he has added yet another promotion to an already impressive CV. No wonder Ferdinand is so pleased to see this latest achievement.