Sheffield United vs Manchester United Odds
| Sheffield United Odds | +600 |
| Man United Odds | -250 |
| Draw | +400 |
| Over / Under | 2.5 -188 / +140 |
Bottom of the table Sheffield United will be hosting Man United this Saturday at Bramall Lane as both sides look to improve their form after the international break.
Erik Ten Hag’s men have gotten off to a less than ideal start in their first eight matches, currently sitting 10th in the Premier League with a negative goal difference. It very well could have been three successive losses at Old Trafford had it not been for the late heroics of Scott McTominay against Brentford. Ten Hag and the Red Devils will be looking to carry this momentum to Bramall Lane where they are heavy favorites against the struggling Sheffield United.
The Blades have not fared well in their return to the Premier League. Paul Heckingbottom currently has the Blades rock bottom of the Premier League with a lone point. They have conceded the most goals in the league and scored the second-fewewst through the first eight matches.
With both sides struggling, let’s get into how I see this match playing out and how to bet this one.
Sheffield United
Sheffield United are coming off a 3-1 loss to Fulham prior to a much-needed international break for Heckingbottom’s men. However, the break has not given their players enough time to recover from injury.
Heckingbottom will be without Osborn, Basham, Jebbison, Baldock, Coulibaly, Egan, Lowe, Norrington-Davies, Davies and Osula in this match. That is a long list of injuries for a side that is just trying to find any sort of momentum to grab ahold of in the fight to avoid relegation.
There has been next to no reason for optimism so far for Blades supporters. They are bottom of the Premier League, leaking goals against every side they play and have struggled to find the back of the net. To make matters even worse, their underlying metrics are not encouraging either.
In terms of the Blades' defensive metrics, they have actually slightly over-performed their PsxG number so far. This is a huge sign for concern as they have given up the most goals in the league and it realistically could have been more.
One positive is that they have suffered from some poor finishing in these first eight matches, which means they may be due for some regression soon. And with the defensive fragility of this makeshift Manchester United back line, there could be some chances for the Blades to create something and try to get something from this match.
Man United
For a team of Manchester United’s stature, the beginning of this season has been a nightmare. They came into the season with so much optimism, thinking about potentially challenging for the title, which they have not showed at all so far.
United have completely lacked a clear identity under Ten Hag. They are not an elite pressing side with 12.3 PPDA, which is 10th in the league. They do have the fifth-most high turnovers, however none of them have ended in a goal thus far. They have 3.8 passes per sequence and a 10.73 sequence time, showing that they are also not a great possession side.
They have accumulated the joint most direct attacks in the league with 24, showing that they are playing in a counterattacking type of way, which can work when you have a solid defensive structure to turn the ball over enough without conceding.
United have not shown to be defensively sound up to this point. That's somewhat because of injuries, but also just because of the personnel they currently have at their disposal. They will most likely play a backline of Dalot, Maguire, Lindelof/Evans and Reguilon. This is not the most ideal spot for the Red Devils because their transition attack could be efficient, but it is no use if their backline is not up to the standard of their way of playing.
Sheffield United vs Man United
Pick & Prediction
These teams are exactly where they should be in the league table right now. There is very little encouragement from the underlying metrics that would suggest either of these sides have been unlucky.
United are middle of the road in most categories, which is why they currently sit 10th in the league. The Blades have been far and away the worst side, statistically, in the league this season. They are deservedly rock bottom of the league.
Neither squad has shown enough to pick a side in this match. I do not see any value on United away from home as they have struggled over the past 14 months away from Old Trafford. Sheffield United have not shown anything to justify taking them in any way.
For these reasons, the only play where I see some value is both teams to score at -135 via DraftKings. The defensive fragility of both sides tells me that either side can concede multiple goals, therefore I like the spot and the value.
