Heckingbottom was appointed head coach at Bramall Lane in November 2021 and guided the Blades back to the top flight by finishing second in the Championship last season. However, the Blades have struggled in the top-flight so far this season.
United sit at the bottom of the table, having won just once this season, slumping to a 5-0 defeat at Burnley at the weekend. The Blades have also conceded a league-high 39 goals in 14 league games. Heckingbottom is the first manager in the top division to be sacked this season; last year, Scott Parker (Bournemouth), Thomas Tuchel (Chelsea), Bruno Lage (Wolves), Steven Gerrard (Aston Villa) and Ralph Hasenhuttl (Southampton) had all been sacked before December.
Speaking after his side’s defeat at Turf Moor, Heckingbottom admitted his frustration at being unable to keep his squad together that won promotion last season. Supporters also chanted ‘Hecky out’ towards the end of the thrashing.
He said: “I wanted to keep the group together, but we couldn’t. We couldn’t because of the last few years and the financial implications. “If we’d tied them down [on longer contracts] then we probably wouldn’t have sold those players.
“There wasn’t a desire from the ownership to sell, but a necessity from a business point of view. We’ve been making financial decisions rather than football decisions. Of course, that affects me. I didn’t want it to happen.”
Former United boss Chris Wilder is expected to replace Heckingbottom. A former player for the club, the 56-year-old left the club by mutual consent in March 2021 after nearly five years in charge. He was last in charge of Watford, spending just two months at Vicarage Road before leaving at the end of last season. His first game in charge will be against Liverpool
Sheffield United have sacked Paul Heckingbottom and turned to former manager Chris Wilder in a desperate attempt to revive their ailing Premier League campaign.
