Chris Wilder was unable to steer Sheffield United away from relegation last season, and now Slavisa Jokanovic has been tasked with getting the club back to England's top tier. 

The Serbian manager was appointed at the end of May and has had a great deal of time to assess his options for the upcoming campaign.

One player who has expressed how impressed he has been with the new manager is centre-back Jack Robinson. Speaking to the Athletic about Jokanovic's arrival and the club's subsequent pre-season campaign, the 27-year-old said: “I’ve enjoyed the work we have done (in pre-season). The manager has come in and given us a fresh idea on football; trying to do things his way, completely different to Chris and the last management team.

“The lads seem to be enjoying it — I certainly have been. When playing against the manager’s teams (Watford and Fulham, both of whom Jovanovic led to Premier League promotion), they were always the same. Very solid and good in possession, good football teams. They worked hard on and off the ball. That is what we will be doing this season.

Robinson has featured just 17 times since his January move to the Yorkshire club in 2020, but he will be hoping to play a part this time around.

The Blades kick off the 2021/22 Championship campaign with a home fixture against Birmingham City on Saturday afternoon.

The verdict

Jokanovic is a serial winner, who knows exactly what it is like to win promotion from the second-tier.

It is a big year for The Blades who will be eyeing up an immediate return to the Premier League. Equally, it is as big of a season for Robinson, who will be hoping to see more minutes on the pitch.

The Blades' defence was very strong during the 2019/20 campaign, meaning first-team opportunities were hard to come by.

He will certainly be waiting for a chance to prove himself this time around, and the good thing for Robinson with a new manager is that everyone is put on a level playing field.