- Paul Heckingbottom achieved promotion for Sheffield United from the Championship
- However, he has only one win and five points in fourteen top-flight matches
- Manchester United in a mess – they have a collapse in them – It all starts
Sheffield United will reportedly sack Paul Heckingbottom after Saturday's dismal 5-0 defeat to Burnley.
The Blades are bottom of the Premier League table having won just one match since their return to the top flight.
Now The Athletics reports that they will relieve Heckingbottom of his duties today in a bid to turn around their fortunes, with the club moving four points clear of safety.
He would be the first Premier League boss to lose his job this season, with the sides taking a softer approach to sackings.
Sheffield United is the most toothless team in the competition with eleven goals and the most leaky at the back, with 39 goals conceded.
Sheffield United will reportedly sack Paul Heckingbottom today following the 5-0 defeat to Burnley last weekend
A ten-man Sheffield United capitulated on the road to give Burnley their first home points of the season
The pressure is mounting on Heckingbottom after the Blades have won one this season
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In Europe's top five leagues, only Almeria has a worse points total in La Liga, with four draws and no wins.
Things started to look up for Sheffield United in early November, as they recorded a 2-1 win over Wolves and a 1-1 draw at Brighton.
However, a 3-1 home loss to Bournemouth and a 5-0 defeat at Turf Moor have cast doubt on their ability to compete with their rivals in the drop zone dogfights.
From the away match against Burnley there were chants of 'Hecky out'.
One of the most worrying aspects of their season was the number of thrashings as they also lost 5-0 to Arsenal and 8-0 to Newcastle.
The 8-0 humiliation against the Magpies was the club's worst ever home defeat.
Some will wonder whether Heckingbottom received enough support as his side made the step up to the Championship.
Only Luton, Crystal Palace and Everton spent less in the summer and the Blades were stripped of some of their key assets, replacing them with promising but less proven players.
Vital players such as Iliman Ndiaye, who scored fifteen goals last season, and Sander Berge, who was sold to Burnley a few days before the start of the season, left the club.
After losing to Burnley, Heckingbottom spoke about his frustrations with their summer transfer policy.
He told the BBC: 'I wanted to keep the group together but I couldn't.
“Because of the past few years and the financial implications, we couldn't do that. If we had tied them down (with longer contracts), we probably wouldn't have sold those players.
'There was no desire from the owner to sell, but a necessity from a business point of view. We made financial decisions instead of football decisions. Of course that has consequences for me. I didn't want it to happen.'
Last season, five Premier League managers had lost their jobs by this stage.
Heckingbottom initially entered the Bramall Lane dugout when he stepped in as interim manager at the end of the 2020/21 season, replacing Chris Wilder.
He was unable to steer the club from relegation, winning three and losing eight of his eleven games in charge.
Slavisa Jokanovic took his place as the club dropped to the Championship, but Heckingbottom was called up again in November 2021 when the Serbian coach was sacked.
Heckingbottom led the Yorkshire team to the play-offs in the 2021/22 season before gaining automatic promotion from the Championship.
A run of eleven defeats in fourteen Premier League games could force the hand of the club's Saudi owner, Prince Abdullah.