Sheffield United host Southampton tomorrow in the last of three consecutive Premier League matches at Bramall Lane in the space of a week. Having hosted Liverpool and Aston Villa, the Blades face Southampton for the second time this season, looking for maximum points, as they attempt to make the greatest escape from relegation since the Premier League began.
A league defeat to Liverpool was seemingly inevitable, despite the Reds being in a slump before two unfortunate goals ensured victory at the Lane last Sunday. They have found some motivation having claimed a 1-0 victory against Aston Villa. David McGoldrick netted the game’s only goal after 30 minutes with the latter stages of the second half seeing United defend deeply after a VAR decision on 57 minutes decided to dismiss defender Phil Jagielka as the last man after the referee initially punished the veteran with a yellow card. United’s fourth league victory of the season keeps the Blades rock bottom but the gap between certain relegation and safety has reduced to twelve points before this weekend’s fixtures.
It gives Blades boss Chris Wilder a huge defensive problem, with most of the team already injured, the red card issued to Jagielka will result in a one-match suspension, which is served against Southampton, and will be available for next week’s trip to Leicester City. Wilder has joked that he may have to play striker Oli McBurnie in the heart of the defence, though it is likely that he will switch Enda Stevens to a central role and feature Ben Osborn in the left wing-back role. At the other end of the pitch, David McGoldrick, who started his career with tomorrow’s opponents (pictured), picked up his fifth booking of the season and he too will be suspended and unavailable for selection.
Blades boss Chris Wilder has faced a huge issue with injuries throughout the season, with midfielder Sander Berge and defender Jack O’Connell missing the majority of the campaign through injury and are not likely to return any time soon. He has now added key defenders John Egan (foot), and Chris Basham (hamstring) to that list, making last season’s influential trio all absent through injury. He is also without Jack Robinson, Jayden Bogle, Jack Rodwell, through injury.
Rolling back the years – David McGolrick celebrates scoring at Wolverhampton Wanderers, for Southampton in 2005 in the FA Cup Cup Semi-Final shoot-out. The Saints lost 3-2 on aggregate to Ipswich Town in the two-legged final.
Fourteenth placed Southampton travel to Bramall Lane in poor form having gone nine matches without victory. Their draw 1-1 draw with Chelsea on 20th February remains their only point earned during this period. Despite a poor run of games, the Saints have been one of the nine Premier League clubs to have topped the division this season. Their last league victory came on 4th January in an impressive 1-0 win over Liverpool. They however still alive in the FA Cup and will be expected to reach the semi-finals when they place South Coast rivals AFC Bournemouth in two weeks – though I wouldn’t rule out a Cherries win either!
Ralph Hasenhuttl will be looking to complete the league double over the Blades having won 3-0 at St Mary’s Stadium on 13th December. Goals from former Blades striker Che Adams, Stuart Armstrong, and Nathan Redmond were enough to destroy United that day, in what was considered a woeful performance by the visitors.
The Saints are boosted by the return of influential right full-back Kyle Walker-Peters after he has returned from a thigh injury after being absent from their last three Premier League outings. They are also delighted to see duo Moussa Djenpo, who scored the winner in this fixture last season, and Ibrahima Diallo (thigh) close to a return but it won’t be against Sheffield United, and they may return in a few weeks. They will however be without William Smallbone (ACL), Theo Walcott, Takumi Minamino (both thigh), Oriol Romeu (ankle), and Michael Obafemi through injury.
Past Premier League Results… vs. Southampton
03.10.1992 – Sheffield United 2-0 Southampton
27.02.1993 – Southampton 3-2 Sheffield United
02.10.1993 – Southampton 3-3 Sheffield United
26.03.1994 – Sheffield United 0-0 Southampton
14.09.2019 – Sheffield United 0-1 Southampton
26.07.2020 – Southampton 3-1 Sheffield United
13.12.2020 – Southampton 3-0 Sheffield United
Forthcoming Blades Fixtures;
*All fixtures are subject to change
14 Mar – Leicester City (a) – 14:00
21 Mar – Chelsea (a) – 13:30 (FAC QF)
03 Apr – Leeds United (a) – 15:00
10 Apr – Arsenal (h) – 15:00
17 Apr – Wolverhampton Wanderers (a) – 15:00
24 Apr – Brighton & Hove Albion (h) – 15:00
01 May – Tottenham Hotspur (a) – 15:00
08 May – Crystal Palace (h) – 15:00
11 May – Everton (a) – 19:45
15 May – Newcastle United (a) – 15:00
23 May – Burnley (h) – 16:00