Speed relishing management break with Blades

SHEFFIELD, England (AFP) – Gary Speed said Tuesday the chance to become the new manager of Sheffield United was “too good to turn down”.

The former Blades player-coach and Wales midfielder, who spent nearly 20 years as a top-flight midfelder, was appointed on a three-year contract after the second-tier Championship club parted company with Kevin Blackwell after the 3-0 home loss to QPR, managed by former Blades boss Neil Warnock.

That followed United’s League Cup defeat by Hartlepool.

“I’m delighted to be given the opportunity to manage a great club like Sheffield United,” Speed said.

“These opportunities don’t come around very often and I feel this is my time and that I’m ready for the step-up.

“I would have liked it to have been in better circumstances. We were all disappointed on Saturday and I’d like to thank Kevin Blackwell for everything he did for me personally.

“He helped me in many aspects of coaching and management and I’m sure it won’t be too long before he’s back in the game.

“He did a lot of work here behind the scenes that will stand this club in good stead in the future.”

Speed added: “I think at this time I’d be silly to pass up the opportunity. I know the club, I know the players, I know the fans, so hopefully that will give me the best chance to be successful.”

Blades chief executive Trevor Birch said: “I don’t want to dwell on any great detail about Kevin Blackwell’s departure other than to thank him once again for the tremendous amount of hard work he’s done over the last two-and-a-half years, much of it behind closed doors, which the general public don’t get to see.

“Suffice to say we renewed the management situation at the end of last season, decided against change despite the disappointing season for a club with high ambitions for Premier League status.

“But recent events, in particular Saturday’s result and the manner of defeat, caused us to revisit the decision and, perhaps earlier than expected, we felt we had to make a change now to give us every opportunity of challenging for promotion this year and utilising the remaining two weeks of the transfer window.”