After the highs of beating Arsenal on Saturday the Blades came back down to earth with a bump against Middlesbrough on New Years day. Sheffield United were on the wrong end of a 3-1 score line in a poor game at the Riverside.
The Blades started slowly and made little improvement as the game went on. Middlesbrough created the first chances, as a deflected shot from Yakubu went wide and then Arca saw his effort graze Gerrard`s left hand post.
United`s first real strike on goal was from a Gillespie freekick that was pushed around the post by Schwarzer.
A neat flick from Viduka then found Yakubu in the box but he blazed over from the edge of the area.
The breakthrough came on 36 minutes as Viduka twisted and turned on the edge of the box to make space for a shot, which caught a slight deflection, and sent Gerrard the wrong way. The stand in keeper will have been disappointed that he was beaten by a shot so close to the centre of his goal.
The Blades finally came to life in the final minutes of the half. A long ball from Armstrong was chested down by Hulse but the striker went down under the clumsy challenge of Pogatetz into his back. Hulse`s blatant dive from a similar situation later in the game was pathetic, but the referee got the penalty decision right. Jagielka stepped up and sent the keeper the wrong way to secure United`s first penalty success of the season.
The Blades could have snatched the lead before half time, as Hulse was denied at the far post by some good defending, before Morgan saw his header cleared off the line from the resulting corner.
Middlesbrough started the slightly brighter at the start of the second half with chances for Downing and Yakubu, but in fairness both sides looked poor.
On 69 minutes the Blades found themselves behind again, as Viduka broke down the right wing and saw his shot squirm under Gerrard for Yakubu to tap in from close range. The Blades keeper will again be disappointed with his part in the goal, as he really should have done better with Viduka`s effort.
The game was all but over on 76 minutes as the referee predictably gave Middlesbrough a penalty in reply to the away sides earlier spot-kick. TV replays however, suggested that Yakubu had handled the ball on the edge of the area before Morgan`s challenge. Nevertheless, Yakubu coolly sent Gerrard the wrong way to increase Middlesbrough`s lead.
The final 15 minutes of the game petered out with little incident as the Blades were clearly paying for the effort they put in against Arsenal less than 48 hours earlier. Middlesbrough certainly deserved the win, as too many United players had off days.
Player Ratings
Gerrard
3/10
A shocker for the stand in keeper! Should have done better with both the first and second goal.
Kozluck
5/10
Too many mis-placed passes.
Armstrong
5.5/10
Know he’s capable of more, which is disappointing.
Davis
5/10
Bullied by Viduka and Yakuba.
Morgan
5/10
Same as Davis.
Tonge
4/10
Really poor performance from Tongey. Nothing seemed to come off for him.
Jagielka
5.5/10
Good penalty but just not involved enough.
S. Quinn
5.5/10
Not his usual busy self.
Gillespie
4/10
Whether he’s still suffering from a virus or not Keeeith was hardly involved.
Hulse
4/10
Was worth 5/10 but docking a point for a shocking dive!
Webber
1/10
Doesn’t deserve paying at the minute and surely needs dropping from the squad.
Nade
6/10
Chased every ball and looked like he cared.
Kazim-Richards
5.5/10
Went on one decent run but has this man ever heard of wearing studs in his boots!
5/10
Had little to no impact on the game, but was chasing a lost cause.