The Sheffield United vs. Newcastle match (22.30pm on September 24) will not be an easy test for the Warblers.
Let’s analyze the Premier League match preview this weekend with the 90phut website.
Sheffield United vs. Newcastle: Waiting for the Magpies’ Pass
After moving away from England’s top flight last season by finishing second in the Championship, Sheffield United have set their sights on staying away from relegation. However, accomplishing this goal is not easy when the start of this team has not been smooth. Paul Heckingbottom’s men kicked off the season with a 1-0 defeat at home to Crystal Palace and then a 2-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest.
In the last fight, Sheffield played bravely as visitors to Tottenham. Heckingbottom’s men took the lead after Hamer’s goal, and until the 90th minute, they held a 1-0 advantage. However, in the 90+8th and 90+10th minutes, Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski scored in quick succession to give the home team a successful comeback to win 2-1. Thus, three of Sheffield’s first five matches of this year’s Premier League season ended 1-2.
Among them, there were 4 losses and 1 draw. If you look further, only 1/10 of the last games that this team has won (through 8 losses) have been won. With only 1 point collected, the Bramall Lane team is currently 18th in the table, 2 points less than 17th-place Bournemouth. There is no doubt that in order to succeed in relegation, they will have to put in a lot of effort.
In Round 6, Sheffield returned home to host Newcastle. The Sheffield United vs. Newcastle verdict is entirely in favor of the home team, but in the current predicament, the home team will need to do their best to hope for points. In terms of head-to-head records, the two teams proved to be very similar. In their past 93 matches, Sheffield United have had 35 wins and only 36 losses. However, in the last five matches against Newcastle, Sheffield United proved unlucky when they had one win but three defeats.
On the other side of the line, Newcastle’s season started ambiguously. Earlier, they hammered Newcastle 5-1 at home. However, the Warblers were unable to sustain this impressive form after that. They met Manchester City and Liverpool and received consecutive defeats with scores of 0-1 and 1-2. After the national team’s series in September, the team under Howe’s management went on to fall 1-3 at Brighton. After a run of three consecutive defeats, Newcastle have finally regained their faith. They overwhelmed Brentford 1-0 at home and got back on the winning path.
In their first match in Group F of the 2023–24 Champions League, the team from the north-east of England played away at AC Milan. This match witnessed the transformation of the English team, when they only had six shots and only one on target. This is a much more modest number than the home team’s 25 shots and 9 on goal. With a solid defense, Newcastle did not let Milan score and ended the match in a goalless draw.
After the clash with Milan, Newcastle will have an easier series of games on the schedule. Sheffield, Burnley, West Ham United, and Crystal Palace are the next opponents the Warblers will face. This is seen as an opportunity for Newcastle to accelerate and close the gap to the leading group. Currently, Callum Wilson and the Newcastle players are 12th in the table. Success against Sheffield will help them improve their position in the table significantly.
In terms of the squad, Sheffield United will be involved in this battle without key striker Oli McBurnie, who was pulled out of the squad in the final minutes of last weekend’s defeat to Tottenham. Rhys Norrington-Davies, George Baldock, and Max Lowe also withdrew due to various injuries. However, John Egan was able to return to stand shoulder to shoulder with Anel Ahmedhodzic and Jack Robinson in midfield.
On the right side of the pitch, Newcastle United are also without midfielders Joelinton and Joe Willock through injury, which means Sean Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes, and Sandro Tonali could start. There are even more options in the forward line, with Alexander Isak and Callum Wilson vying for the top spot in the forward line. Anthony Gordon and Jacob Murphy have played alongside Isak at the San Siro, but they will have to fight for spots alongside Harvey Barnes and Miguel Almiron. In midfield, the quartet of Sven Botman, Fabian Schar, Dan Burn, and Kieran Trippier will continue to be used.
Analysis of the goals of two teams
Sheffield have only won 1 point from 5 Premier League matches this season and are 18th in the table, not comparable to Newcastle. However, the visitors have not performed well this season. In the past week, Newcastle had a commendable game when drawing AC Milan in the European Cup at the San Siro.
However, to get such a goalless draw, manager Howe and his players had to try very hard, and this has fans worried about Newcastle’s battle in the Premier League this weekend. With inconsistent form, depleted fitness, and having to play away from home, it was difficult for Newcastle to easily win.