He was nowhere near as scatching or angry as he was after last week's defeat at Luton, but Chris Wilder was still clearly hurting when he spoke to the media after yesterday's defeat against Huddersfield.

Wilder started by saying: “Great, great day for our opponents, and congratulations to them on a solid performance and good result. But it’s been a really difficult day for everybody at the football club.

“I’ll take responsibility for that performance. We enjoy it when we win and we like to take the plaudits, so I’ll take the responsibility for that, and own that performance and result."

There wasn’t a great deal of character or good attitude was there?

“Well, that’s for you to write in your reports. We set the team up to play in a certain way, I thought we did it and we knew what was coming.

“We understand the challenge of a team that’s on a good run and fighting for their lives. We know the way they play. I’ve played and managed so many styles and formations, and we knew they would use a low block and play on the counter-attack.

“They were going to defend with their lives but have the energy to counter, which they did against Middlesbrough, Norwich and Millwall, and then against us today.

“We knew they’d be good at set plays, which they were. So the warnings were there before the game.

“I thought for the first 20/25 minutes we controlled possession, but a stat of 75% possession means nothing really if you don’t defend right, if you don’t secure the ball at the top of the pitch.

“We scored our goal to get into the lead and Yaser should possibly have taken it to two, but he didn’t.

“It was a really poor three goals to concede, all three of them, and at bad times too. Just before half time and just after half time.

“A counter attack that should have been stopped, a set play that we didn’t deal with and then another counter attack that wasn’t defended well enough.

“Regardless of formation we didn’t defend our goal well enough and that gets them 3-1 up away from home in a low block.

“And they pretty much saw the game out pretty comfortably.”

When you go into the dressing room, do you see the same level of hurt in the players’ faces as you’re feeling?

“I can only talk about myself. Did I see a team that gave up? No, they went to the end. I believe they tried to get a result out of the game.

“There are all types of bravery, though, that we look for in a professional footballer.

“Being 3-1 down and the mood around the place – and that’s not a criticism of the fane because at 3-1 down they had every right to be negative, because of the way the game went.

“As I said, I’ll take that responsibility for the way the game went. I set the team up, I formulate the shape, I decided the tactics. I own that performance myself.”

You made two changes today: one tactical and one enforced. Are you at a point now where you think you may have given the current group enough chances?

“Well we’ve got an obligation because we’re still not out of it, which is a ridiculous thing to say. We’re doing our best to get out of it but we’re still there.

“I’m looking at individual and collective performances of course. What works and what doesn’t work. We’re looking at things position specific.

“Joao played up front today. He did that when Watford went up out of the Championship into the Premier League, he played as a nine.

“Yaser, that’s his position. Kone that’s his position. One against one they’re really good and I thought in the first 25 minutes we got into some really good positions.

“Three centre halves, it suits them. Two midfielders, a left footer and a right footer. Then you’ve got two wing backs, and that’s what we went for.

“Unfortunately it didn’t work out, and I do think the basic aspects of football are the same – regardless of formation.

“We went into the second half and were going to give it 10 or 15 minutes to see how it goes. We were just about to make changes and we’ve got done on a free kick, not winning the header or the second ball.

“At times it’s quite difficult to take in from a tactical point of view and a shape point of view when basic fundamental aspects we need to deal with a lot better.

“The three goals we gave away were really poor."

What was your view on the red card?

“It’s a late challenge and a yellow card. I’ve not gone into details yet about his first yellow but it looked like something from a dissent point of view.

“He lunged in. If a player makes that challenge anywhere on the pitch it’s a yellow card, isn’t it?

“He’s paid the ultimate price. The senior ones from a professional point of view, didn’t help the cause.

“We were chasing lost causes anyway, that deep into injury time, but Dan going off didn’t help. He’ll learn from that, he’s going to miss a game on Monday.

“From his point of view, he possibly needs to check his emotions a little bit and show them in a bit more of a positive light.”

Is it difficult to direct operations against a backdrop of discontent from the stands?

“We’d all love it to be an incredibly positive environment. But I’ve got no criticism of the supporters whatsoever.

“I said my piece last week and it’s my job to manage the football team, organise them, put them in a structure.

“We tried to get a result, we just didn’t do enough of it and conceded three poor goals.

“We just have to deal with what we have to deal with, and try to get ourselves back into the game regardless of what is going on around it.”

Could you be caught in the crossfire between the supporters and the owners?

“I’m here just to manage the team. I give my honest opinion to the sporting director in terms of where I am.

“But I’m just here to manage the team, try to get the best out of the players and get us some results between now and the end of the season.”