Sheffield United will have to accept their place in football's order unless real investment arrives

There’s a fine line between defeatism and realism but sometimes it’s all very simple. How Sheffield United went into this season defines their season. And the other clear reason why they are bottom? Money. Or lack of. And a corresponding lack of Premier League players.

For all the “football manager” tripe on social media - pinning blame on individuals, tactics or that old chestnut “lack of fight” - the reason for the unwinnable struggle is clearly understood in pubs and on street corners, the real world.

Ah, Luton Town, you say. Well, hats off to them if you’ll pardon the pun. And yes, they are putting the Blades to shame right now ahead of Saturday’s crunch meeting between the sides at Kenilworth Road. But, with no diminishing of their performance, let’s acknowledge this. The Premier League is a shiny new thing to Luton - just as it was for United in their first season back under this manager, 2019-20.

The Blades finished ninth (could have been higher but for COVID). Impetus, enthusiasm and a little planning goes a long way. United didn’t really have any of those things going for them this time. That’s why it’s become, quite predictably, more of a campaign to be endured, than enjoyed. They’ve had two managers, they could have had ten for all the difference it would make.

So the direction of travel and the future of the club can only be about one man - the owner. Is he serious about selling? Can he attract a partner? Will he cede some control if he does? Is he prepared to step aside altogether if he doesn’t?

Let’s be clear, we’re not talking rogue owner here. Prince Abdullah lets the football side run itself and, although he is largely absent, I do think he has a genuine feeling for the club. He’s never made any pretence either about the financial strain of the undertaking; January backing was as good as it could be. And no-one is suggesting he should spend money he and United don’t have. Caution and responsibility are admirable traits. Plus he was big enough to bring Chris Wilder back, with every sign of a permanently healed relationship.

But there has been little sign of a buyer emerging beyond inevitably failed deals with a couple of subsequently massively discredited characters who, for a period, took the focus and onus off Abdullah.

Following promotion last season, he then set a theoretical four-week deadline for a sale. Nothing happened, except for the convenience, if you want to be cynical, of again removing personal pressure. This prescribed a summer stalemate, culminating in the sale of two key players and far-too-late arrivals. The impression, rightly or wrongly, is that Abdullah doesn’t really want out at all; certainly that he would prefer to carry on with an investor in tow. That is his prerogative. And it doesn’t excuse complete no-shows like Aston Villa last Saturday, for which Wilder and his players rightly took full accountability.

But the plain fact is this. Until the club equips itself properly, or accepts itself for what it is, any manager will be under pressure to over-achieve. And the same applies to the players.