Sheffield United

Chris Wilder spoke to BBC Match of the Day after Sheffield United's defeat to Burnley: "McBurnie had to come off with a tight hamstring. Hamer had to come off with a tight calf.

"We understand the magnitude of today's result. Still, as a professional footballer, the way I have been brought up, I like to think they have those qualities and will go to the end. Until it is mathematically there in front of us we have to. I will. My staff will. The players need to do that. We have an obligation to the supporters and the division.

"I don't think there was a lack of fight. It sometimes comes down to when you need to put teams to bed."

• Sheffield United have become just the third team in history to concede 50+ goals at home in an English top-flight campaign, after Aston Villa in 1935-36 (56) and Chelsea in 1959-60 (50).

• Burnley have scored nine goals against Sheffield United in the Premier League this season, the outright most they’ve netted against an opponent in a campaign in the competition (overtaking seven vs Bournemouth in 2018-19).

• Burnley’s Jóhann Gudmundsson scored just 17 seconds after coming on as a substitute, while it was his first strike in the competition since February 2021 v Crystal Palace – ending a run of 50 Premier League appearances without a goal.

• Only Oliver McBurnie in January 2024 (5 games) has had a longer run of either scoring or assisting at Bramall Lane for Sheffield United in the Premier League this season than Gustavo Hamer (3 games - 1 goal, 2 assists).

• Lorenz Assignon became just the second Burnley defender to both score and assist in a Premier League game, after Daniel Fox did so in a 2-1 victory over West Ham in February 2010.

Burnley gave their Premier League survival hopes a huge boost with a vital victory to push bottom side Sheffield United further towards relegation.

A must-win game for both sides went the way of Vincent Kompany's men as clinical finishing allowed them to move just three points off safety, while Chris Wilder's side are now 10 points adrift.

The Clarets were second best for much of the first half with Arijanet Muric making crucial saves to keep his side in the contest, before they scored twice in the space of three minutes.

On-loan Jacob Bruun Larsen broke the deadlock on 38 minutes when his scuffed volley took a deflection and wrong-footed goalkeeper Ivo Grbic to dribble in at the near post.

In the next attack Burnley doubled their advantage courtesy of full-back Lorenz Assignon weaving through and poking home via Grbic's outstretched leg and the crossbar.

Muric made an outstanding save to deny James McAtee's strike which was bound for the top corner, but he could do nothing about Gustavo Hamer cutting inside and curling in a sumptuous finish to give Sheffield United hope.

But the visitors restored their two-goal advantage following Lyle Foster's tidy, first-time finish from Assignon's cross and substitute Johann Berg Gudmundsson added a delightful fourth for a thumping triumph.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from elsewhere?

How did you rate the side's performance, Sheffield United fans?

Burnley fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

Follow all of the reaction here

There is three Premier League matches on Saturday, and we will bring you every moment.

All times are BST

BBC Radio 5 Live commentary:

• Luton v Brentford

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Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.

For this weekend's games, he takes on singer-songwriter and Arsenal fan Sam Tompkins.

Sutton's prediction: 1-2

Both of these teams have had a very similar habit in recent weeks of shooting themselves in the foot.

I felt for Clarets boss Vincent Kompany after Arijanet Muric's latest mistake gifted Brighton an equaliser last week. Kompany took James Trafford out of the team because of his form, or lack of it, but whoever he picks in goal, they keep costing Burnley points.

I actually think Burnley will get the job done this time, though. They beat Sheffield United 5-0 at Turf Moor earlier in the season and I am expecting them to come out on top again.

The Blades will give everything but Burnley will have a bit too much quality for them, and I'm afraid that's been the story of Sheffield United's season.

Sam's prediction: 1-0

This is probably Sheffield United's biggest game of the season. I don't think they are getting out of the bottom three, but a win here would give them a bit of confidence.

Read the rest of their predictions here

Sheffield United host fellow strugglers Burnley in the Premier League this weekend - listen to Chris Wilder's pre-match news conference on the latest episode of BBC Radio Sheffield's Blades Heaven podcast on BBC Sounds.

Wilder's side are four points adrift of the second-bottom Clarets before Saturday's game at Bramall Lane.

Chris Wilder has been speaking to the media before Sheffield United host Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday (15:00 BST kick-off).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Wilder confirmed Jack Robinson and Jayden Bogle are both "struggling" to be available for the weekend and said it is a "blow" for the team to lose "two influential players in the group – Jack from a leadership point of view and Jayden as one of our most outstanding players in the way he has gone about his business".

• On if he was hopeful they would be back before the end of the season: "We are. My frustration has been the soft tissue injuries the season. These boys have both had injuries, ankle ligament damages, from falling... We are frustrated but most frustrating is when you lose players to soft tissues injuries or in training - those are the ones that hurt us."

• He added: "Last time in the Premier League in 2019-20, availability for training and playing was at 90%. We are nowhere near that this season and that will go a long way for us to have a successful season - whatever division we are in next year."

• He said staying up "has got to be our aim", adding: "We want to take it down to the wire and we understand the importance of every game."

• On the decision to scrap FA Cup replays after the first round: "The game is dominated by the big boys, and the big boys don't want FA Cup replays, do they? There is an argument that they are bringing all the money into the game. I'm a traditionalist, so what does that do to non-league clubs that get into the fairytale world of round three and get a draw at home and the financial implications for them of getting a draw at a big club?"

• On whether players like Daniel Jebbison are having options in their contracts exercised: "Daniel Jebbison is close to agreeing, if not agreed. It will be announced when the pen is in his hand and he signs."

• Wilder said opponents Burnley "had a more settled pre-season than what we had, but like us they have found it difficult and found results difficult to come by". He added: "Both teams are after three points. We are in it to win it and so will they be. We haven't picked up enough points that performances have deserved recently. We need to play well, show the qualities of recent games and marry performance with a big result."

Follow the rest of Thursday's football news

Here are the key facts before Sheffield United host Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday (15:00 BST).

• Sheffield United have conceded 84 goals in their 32 Premier League games this season. That is the most at this stage of a top-flight campaign since Ipswich Town in 1963-64 (85), and the most the Blades have conceded in a league campaign since 1954-55 (86 in 42 games).

• Burnley have dropped 24 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season, with only Brentford (30) losing more. Meanwhile, Sheffield United have let 17 points slip when winning this term, only losing more in 1993-94 (25).

• Despite no team using more players in the Premier League than United this season (33), no side has had fewer different goalscorers than the Blades (10, excluding own goals).

• Burnley’s Zeki Amdouni has been substituted off in 86% of his league appearances this season (25/29), the highest share of any player to play at least 20 games in Premier League history.

• Sheffield United’s Oli McBurnie has been involved in eight goals in his past eight Premier League home games, scoring six and assisting twice. The only game in this run in which he has not registered a goal or assist was in the Blades’ 6-0 defeat by Arsenal last month.

Former Sheffield United striker Carl Asaba told BBC Radio Sheffield's Blades Heaven podcast that Saturday's game against Burnley has to be viewed "as a cup final" by the players.

"This is huge," Asaba said. "I still feel we will not finish bottom because we do not deserve to finish there but this has to be a cup final.

"They need to give the fans something to cheer about and beat Burnley. Let's beat the team closest to us and take some pride from it.

"The players have something to prove to themselves in this game."

In the reverse fixture in December, the Blades were thrashed 5-0 at Turf Moor in a game where Oli McBurnie was sent off.

Both teams continue to fight for a second successive season in the Premier League, with Vincent Kompany's side just four points above Sheffield United having played an extra game.

Listen to the Blades Heaven podcast on BBC Sounds

Ben Meakin
Fan writer

Just when I thought that nothing else could go wrong this season, the news drops that we will start the next campaign with a points deduction. This effectively means that we will finish this season bottom of one league table, and start the following season bottom of another.

It was an alarming development, to say the least, with the added detail that further deductions have been suspended.

The one consolation is that this transgression occurred last season, prior to promotion and the supposed debt-easing prize money that came with it.

At the time, we were hit with a transfer embargo until the payments were made and I am hopeful that this will be the end of the matter – but you'll forgive me if I'm more than a little on edge about it.

Two points may not be much – although removing that many points from about 80% of teams in the Championship right now would ruin their season – but the continuing mismanagement of the club is a tad embarrassing, especially in a season where barely a week has gone by without some kind of on-field or off-field drama.

If anything, it feels like we have got off quite lightly with a two-point deduction.

I can absolutely understand fingers being pointed by teams who failed to catch us for promotion last season, particularly at the fact we were unable to pay (on time) for some of the players that got us into the Premier League.

At this stage, I am just relieved that we are not under another transfer embargo, which would have been far more damaging given the squad turnover we are about to undergo this summer.

All the same, you have to wonder if this will give clubs justifiable pause over doing business with us in the future.

Ben Meakin can be found at the BladesPod, external

Image source, Getty Images

Former Sheffield United defender Ellie Wilson believes Ollie Arblaster's own goal during the 2-0 defeat to Brentford was a "really harsh deflection" in what was a "really good game" for the 19-year-old midfielder.

Speaking on BBC Radio Sheffield's Blades Heaven podcast, Wilson praised Arblaster: "Ollie Arblaster actually had a really good game. He cleared up possession really well on the whole.

"It was a really harsh deflection [for his own goal]. He has tried to block the cross and it has just taken the ball out of the flight of where the goalkeeper was expecting it to go."

Chris Wilder's side are 10 points away from safety with just six games to go, but Wilson is hoping the team can get "another win or two" before the end of the season: "Hopefully it is coming, just to finish the season on a bit of a high. There have been positives to take over the past few games. We have been scoring goals and they have looked fairly good defensively considering there are a lot of players missing.

"There are things to take forward and positives to take, but hopefully they can finish on a high.

"Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be against Brentford, but I don't think the scoreline necessarily reflects the effort and the performance from the boys."

Listen to the full podcast on BBC Sounds

We asked for your thoughts on Brentford's 2-0 victory over Sheffield United on Saturday.

Here are some of your comments:

Brentford fans

Robert: Poor game, great result and that was the main thing for Brentford - the three points. Vitaly Janelt was the best player for me, so onwards and upwards and hopefully another three points at Luton next Saturday.

Bobby: After being outfought (for once) at Bramall Lane, a scrappy win here was welcome. Janelt excellent again, winning his duels and getting us moving. Sad to see Damsgaard’s goal chalked off, but good that he finally has a run of solid performances. Avoiding defeat at Luton next will surely make us safe. Just happy to survive this season and move on.

Kev: We’ve played much better, but created by far the better chances and deserved the win. Good to see Pinnock and Schade back.

Sheffield United fans

Stuart: Played some good stuff at times - Arblaster is top quality already and has a big future. Substitutions cost us again. McAtee looked like he was running in treacle and let his man go. Grbic - anything on target is a goal.

Shad: Bad substitution on 56 minutes. Wilder takes possibly our best player off, the one who kept all things down that side at bay. He puts Osborne there and we look wide open. Mr Wilder needs to look at himself as all the time this season he's been in charge, most of his decisions have cost us dearly.

Bob: Same old, same old. Not good enough! We need a change in management!

Gary Lineker introduces highlights and analysis from Saturday's six Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up on the action on BBC iPlayer.

Listen back to Saturday's BBC Radio 5 Live and 5 Sports Extra match commentary in full:

Manchester City v Luton Town

Bournemouth v Manchester United

Sam Drury
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Eight games without a win, one victory in 16 Premier League matches and a league-high 84 goals conceded.

Yet even after defeat by another side scrapping at the bottom, and with relegation looming, there have been green shoots of recovery for Sheffield United in recent weeks.

After a season in which they have, at times, failed to compete, Chris Wilder's side appear to have rediscovered their fighting spirit and an ability to stay in games.

They have still leaked goals but in the loss at Brentford, they look solid for long periods and restricted the home side to very few chances of note.

This late-season improvement has almost certainly come too late to save them but the Blades will hope that it provides them with a base to build from over the summer.

The chances of that being ahead of another season in the top flight grow slimmer by the game but until confirmation of their relegation comes, this side are now showing that they will battle to the last to prevent it.

Chris Wilder spoke to Match of the Day after Sheffield United's defeat against Brentford: "From an injury point of view, we don't feel we have had much luck and we have lost another player today and a really significant one [Jayden Bogle].

"I felt there was nothing in the game. This was a tight, cagey affair. We just didn't find that quality when we needed to. We came to win, we felt it was a good opportunity. Brentford are incredible in terms of the game-management. They made really good decisions.

"I'm a little bit disappointed from a quality point of view. We didn't show enough quality and enough big moments that settle these type of games.

"We've got to go again. I've not really looked at the results yet. From my point of view and from the coaches point of view it has been our biggest task to keep morale going. About five weeks ago we got thumped 6-0 by Arsenal. That's not enjoyable.

"It didn't feel [today] like we were a team languishing at the bottom of the table. Unfortunately that is the harsh reality of it. We are [bottom of the table]."

• Brentford have ended their six-match winless streak (D2 L4) against Sheffield United with this afternoon’s victory, their first against the Blades since a 3-1 win in August 2013 in League One.

• Sheffield United have conceded 84 goals in the Premier League this season, the most any team has conceded after 32 games played and the most of any top-flight team at this stage of a season since Ipswich Town in 1963-64 (85).

• Brentford have kept back-to-back clean sheets at the Gtech Community Stadium in the Premier League for the first time this season and for the first time May 2023. Prior to this run, the Bees had conceded 22 goals across 10 home matches – an average of 2.2 goals conceded per game.

• Sheffield United have now failed to keep a clean sheet in each of their past 17 away Premier League matches, only once going on a longer run without an away clean sheet – a run of 22 between June 2020 and May 2021.

• Despite going in at half-time level for the 16th time in the Premier League this season (the fifth most in the division), today’s victory was only Brentford’s fourth after being level at the break this season. Prior to today’s match, the Bees were winless in their five previous such matches (D2 L3).

Brentford beat Sheffield United to claim their first win in 10 Premier League games and ease their relegation fears.

An unfortunate own goal from Blades youngster Oliver Arblaster just past the hour mark put Thomas Frank's side ahead, as he inadvertently sent Mikkel Damsgaard's cross into the far corner.

Substitute Frank Onyeka sealed the win in stoppage time as the Bees move up to 14th, seven points clear of the bottom three.

Meanwhile, Sheffield United remain bottom and take another step towards an immediate return to the Championship.

Chris Wilder's side are 10 points from safety with six games to play.

The visitors started brightly with Ben Brereton Diaz breaking free down the left but he scuffed the shot with just Brentford goalkeeper Mark Flekken to beat.

Brentford soon took charge but despite dominating possession, they struggled to create many chances with Neal Maupay stabbing wide their best opportunity of the first half after United defender Anel Ahmedhodzic gave the ball away inside his own half.

It was a similar story after the break with Mathias Jorgensen seeing a goal ruled out for offside minutes before Brentford's fortuitous opener.

Damsgaard thought he had doubled the lead soon after but the VAR intervened to rule out his crisp volley from Bryan Mbeumno's free-kick for a foul on Oli McBurnie in the build-up.

The Blades pushed for an equaliser but Cameron Archer's wayward shot from a tight angle was as close as they came before Onyeka latched on to the fit-again Kevin Schade's flick-on to fire in the clincher for Brentford.

Were you at the match or did you follow it from elsewhere?

Brentford fans - let us know your thoughts on the game here

How did you rate the side's performance, Blades fans?

Follow all of the reaction here

Six matches make up Saturday's Premier League action, and we will bring you every moment.

BBC Radio 5 Live match commentaries:

• Man City v Luton

• Bournemouth v Man Utd

All times BST

Follow BBC Radio 5 Live commentaries and live text updates here