Can Manchester United maintain their pressure on Chelsea? Football expert Ryan Elliott has two tips for their clash with Sheffield United.
It’s clear that the long, enforced Premier League break will have benefitted some sides (see: Brighton), but Sheffield United are not one of them.
You have to feel for The Blades, who have lost all semblance of the incredible momentum they built-up over the course of this excellent first season back in the big time. Of course, whatever happens from now it’s still been a brilliant season, but drawing at Aston Villa followed by a 3-0 drubbing at Newcastle—brought about primarily because of a John Egan red card—has made their quest for European football that much tougher.
Of course, if they turn Manchester United over at Old Trafford, they’ll be right back in the hunt, so I’m absolutely not counting Chris Wilder’s men out just yet.
As for the home side, they salvaged a draw against Spurs last time out (the least they deserved, if we’re being fair), and while they’re still a million miles off challenging Manchester City and Liverpool for the Premier League title in the years to come, securing Champions League football for next season would be a good stepping stone (oh, how the mighty have fallen).
The last time these two met, at Bramall Lane, we were treated to a 3-3 thriller, although with both sets of players unlikely to be fresh, as well as the lack of a crowd sucking some of the life out of proceedings, I’d expect a much more low-key affair.
John Egan’s suspension, coupled with Jack O’Connell still being doubtful, as well as Dean Henderson’s ineligibility, gives Wilder a headache at the back, which makes a tough task for them even tougher this Wednesday.
As we’ve seen in pretty much every game since the league’s resumption, I do believe it’ll be a fairly quiet first-half, as Wilder will want to protect his side’s clean sheet at all cost.
The Blades have gone into the break level on 16 occasions this season, which is why a draw/Man Utd shot in the half-time/full-time market looks a strong play at 16/5.
This will be the visitors’ third game in just eight days, and after such a long lay-off, that’ll be incredibly tough on players.
Manchester United will be frustrated for long periods of this game, I’m sure of that, but eventually their superior freshness, squad depth and quality will see them claim the points.
