Chris Wilder

There is a lot of crap spoken about footballers being nomads but when you get to a club and you create a spirit, there is no doubt players want to do well for their team-mates and club.

I don't want it to be a holiday camp, but it shouldn't be a concentration camp either. It is about getting the balance right with my relationship with them. I will do anything for the players but I'm not their pal as well.

I'm delighted with the experiences I've had and I've had some experiences to say the least!

Dave Bassett was a key influence on me, the way he treated and talked to people. Wimbledon and Sheffield United were quite direct sides and he got the best out of what he had, but he was an innovator.

I've come across people who look smart in a suit who haven't really got a lot underneath. Football is an unforgiving business and you're easily found out if you're a bit of a fraud.

Certainly Sheffield United have been a good fit for me.

We are not trying to reinvent the wheel. Sometimes it goes well, sometimes you have your off days. We have a way of going about things. Basically we are positive people trying to improve players and teams.

My first job was at Alfreton Town and the chairman backed the club. He wanted to win so it made the job easier. I then went to Halifax, where I turned up and there was no balls, no training ground, no players. I had the other side of it.

Obviously my knowledge of the game has improved but I've tried to keep true to what I believe in.

My players have to be competitors before footballers. They don't pull out of tackles in training. It's full-tilt and if we pick up injuries, we pick up injuries. They have to give everything on the pitch and leave it all out there.

Everyone has their own background and some managers are Premier League footballers, international footballers, some of them find themselves getting jobs.

We used to get into other players' heads mentally and physically. In my day it was me versus you, my future versus your future.