Ben Brereton Diaz scored six goals in his previous loan spell at Sheffield United
Ben Brereton Diaz's first goal for Sheffield United since rejoining the Blades boosted their push for automatic promotion and condemned relegation-battling Derby County to a seventh straight Championship defeat.
Southampton loanee Brereton Diaz, whose first spell at United ended in Premier League relegation last term, met an inviting low ball from Tom Cannon to decisively tap home at the far post.
The opener came after a first half of limited opportunities at Pride Park, where significant news was breaking off the pitch, with Viking centre-back Sondre Langas completing his Rams medical ahead of his move to the East Midlands.
After Brereton Diaz's goal, Kenzo Goudmijn and Matt Clarke headed just over in search of an equaliser and a reprieve for the struggling Rams and their boss Paul Warne.
The leveller never came and boos rang around Pride Park at full-time, as Derby were left languishing third from bottom of the table and two points from safety.
- Published2 February
- Published1 February
- Published1 February
Victory keeps Sheffield United second, but moves them three points clear of third-placed Burnley, who played out a goalless draw with Portsmouth.
For Derby, however, it is now their worst losing run for 17 years, equalling what they did in 2007-08 when they went down with the lowest points tally in Premier League history.
If they lose at Norwich next week they will equal their worst-ever run of results – a record set in the season that league football came into existence in 1888.
With Derby's defensive lynchpin Eiran Cashin completing his £9m move to Premier League side Brighton overnight, Warne called on Matt Clarke for the first time, just days after the centre-back returned to the club for a third spell.
Clarke was kept busy on his return, helping anchor a defence that restricted the Blades to few clear chances before the break.
United boss Chris Wilder also turned to newcomers, with Harry Clarke and Hamza Choudhury among four changes made to the side following their defeat by Hull City a week earlier.
Clarke carved out one of the Blades' best chances of the first 45 minutes, cutting the ball back for Rhian Brewster to fire just wide.
Before that, Brewster had called keeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom into action with an effort from distance, while Michael Cooper was tested at the other end by a dipping volley from Goudmijn and a header from Lars-Jorgen Salvesen.
Derby's inability to contain Cannon as he twisted and turned his way into space on the left early in the second half allowed the forward to tee up Brereton Diaz to break the deadlock with a simple close-range finish.
Goudmijn and Clarke went on to send headers over as the hosts pressed for a leveller, with United hanging on for a win that consolidates their place among the frontrunners as they look to make an immediate return to the Premier League.
'I'm aware of the situation' - reaction
Derby County head coach Paul Warne told BBC Radio Derby:
"I'm hugely disappointed, as everybody is, and I'm well aware of the situation.
"But I can't really knock my team for the efforts they are giving me. And it's our job as coaches to get as much out of the lads as we can. I'm disappointed we lost, because we only conceded one shot in the second half.
"But we are in that form at the moment where we don't take any half-chances that we get, and any we concede seem to go in. That is what my overriding emotion is.
"I just think at the moment that this performance, as an independent performance, wouldn't have been as disappointing. But its on the back of loads of poor results, I understand that.
"I do believe in it [being able to turn Derby around] and if I didn't I wouldn't stand there."
Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder:
"It was a little bit disjointed in terms of the performance, which was made by the commitment, the press, the first and second balls, by the opposition.
"The pitch wasn't great, our transition, when we broke it up first half, wasn't good and we just needed to take more care of the ball.
"But when we did, we found a couple of moments and that is all you need - and we found the great moment. It was fabulous work from Tom Cannon and a fabulous finish from Ben coming in at the back stick.
"We will get better, and quickly we have to get better. But most important was winning a game of football today. It was a great reaction from Friday night [when beaten by Hull City]. We had to dig in and defend well."
