Over 40 hours have passed since the dreaded final whistle blew at Bramall Lane and I’m still in shock. Everything that could go wrong on Sunday did.
Firstly we were sent down by a former player in David Unsworth, secondly it was Tevez who scored the winning goal for West Ham, and thirdly a shot that seemed destined for the back of the net struck the inside of the post and rebounded to safety!
The match itself, as predicted, was a tight and scrappy affair, with Wigan taking an early lead through a well struck Scharner shot.
The Blades replied with a Stead header before Jagielka stupidly handled in the box right before half time to gift Wigan a second from the penalty spot.
The Blades knew they had to score in the second half, and were even helped by a sending off for Wigan striker Lee McCulloch, but the quality in front of goal was lacking.
The best chance fell to Webber who raced clear but saw his chip strike the inside of the post and roll across the line before being cleared.
The last 20 minutes saw almost constant pressure from United but the closest they came to a priceless equaliser came in the last minute when Stead whipped a cross along the six yard box but Webber failed to even react.
The final whistle was met with complete shock and despair in the terraces as Blades fans came to terms with their nightmare scenario coming true.
A lot has been said over the Tevez debacle but United still had their fate in their own hands and just couldn’t produce in the most important match of the season.
Make no mistake, in the end it has been Warnock’s negative tactics away from home that have cost United their Premiership place.
The Blades have only picked up a single point in their last 10 away games of the season, largely due to the negative 4-5-1 formations away from home.
Taking Sunday out of the picture, Warnock has done very well at home this season but his inept tactics away from home have cost us vital points, and in the end relegation.
The bottom line is that United’s squad was good enough to stay in the Premiership but, sadly, the manager and his tactics weren’t.
As for West Ham, the headline in one particular tabloid seemed to sum it all up: ‘Cheats DO Prosper.’
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