Sunday 9th February 2020
Premier League
at Bramall Lane
Sheffield United (1) 2
Billy Sharp 45+2
John Lundstram 84
AFC Bournemouth (1) 1
Callum Wilson 13
Attendance: 30,361
Sheffield United:
Henderson, Baldock, Stevens, Fleck, O'Connell, Basham, McBurnie, Sharp (Mousset 74), Egan, Norwood, Berge (Lundstram 61).
Unused subs - Jagielka, McGoldrick, Verrips, Osborn, Retsos.
AFC Bournemouth:
Ramsdale, Smith Francis, Ake, Rico, Gosling, Surman (Solanke 88), Billing, H Wilson (King 72), Fraser (Stanislas 84), C Wilson.
Unused subs - Boruc, Stacey, S Cook, L Cook.
"I'm telling you... they'll be back down before the Christmas decorations are. Just you wait and see!"
So speaketh a friend, well more of a work associate of mine if truth be told (friend would be stretching a point a fair bit), who follows another Sheffield club, who ply their trade in the EFL Championship, when he was holding court in August.
Well, I waited... and then I waited a bit longer, but all that I'm seeing is, is that there is a very good chance that Sheffield United are heading for a high enough finish in the Premier League this season, to actually qualify for next terms European competition, having ruffled a few feathers while going toe to toe against some of the big guns in the top flight along the way.
For the record, they finished this afternoon in fifth place.
For the record, they finished this afternoon in fifth place.
Chris Wilder is leading the club he loves (and whose supporters love him), to heights that the Bramall Lane faithful, couldn't have even dreamt of just a couple of seasons ago. And as things stand, it looks as though the Blades aren't just sustaining their meteoric rise towards the top of football's elite in this country, but they're actually using their current standing as a solid foundation to build upon, towards an even bright future.
And though my Wednesday supporting colleague, who made the aforementioned prophecy of impending doom and gloom, probably won't thank me for saying such a thing: Sheffield United are a shining example to all clubs outside the predictable top two of Liverpool and Manchester City, that there is always hope for any rank and file 'normal' club, to make a fist of things with the right calibre of people at the helm and a sustainable and secure business plan in place.
Today's visitors are of course, another prime example of a team punching above their apparent weight.
And Leicester City might also lay claim to representing such a template as well, but they've also had the added advantage of being bankrolled to a level, as well as generating a buzz around their locality. Not that the Blades haven't been flashing the cash themselves of late.
Today's visitors are of course, another prime example of a team punching above their apparent weight.
Returning for a moment to the subject of the blue half of Sheffield, it's mathematically possible that the Owls might sneak into the top division themselves this year, via the back-door entry that is the play-offs, but they're going to have to get their skates on if they don't want to miss the promotion party again this term, whilst their neighbours are feasting on a lavish spread at the top table.
The next time that my 'work associate' mentioned the Blades, he was flicking through my most recent copy of BACKPASS magazine this last week, during one of our well earned tea-breaks, when he proclaimed: "Ha,ha, this will piss them piggy Blades off, there's a bit about Terry Curran and the Boxing Day Massacre in here!"
For the benefit of those of you who haven't heard of this occasion before (I am probably correct in assuming that you don't work with a Sheffield Wednesday supporter, if that is the case), on 26 December 1979 (i.e over forty years ago), Division Three leaders United visited Hillsborough to take on fifth placed Wednesday and a crowd of 49,309 saw the home side beat their nearest and dearest 4-0, with the aforementioned Curran scoring the opening goal. I think he missed the point I was making when I replied: "Oh yes, I bet it will... but why are all of the pictures from that day always in black and white?" Pretty much like a lot of televisions still were during that particular decade.
I sat there momentarily awaiting the predictable conclusion to this frequently repeated superiority affirming mantra about his chosen club. And sure enough, less than a minute later: "And that Waddle goal against them at Wembley in the FA Cup Semi-Final, that shut 'em up and put 'em in the place too!"
At least that latter instance was a more recent triumph... weighing in at a mere twenty seven years ago. Let him have his little fantasy... Wednesday are a 'massive' club... and a much, much, bigger club than their Premier League neighbours. However, just in case irony and sarcasm isn't your thing, I wasn't being entirely serious about the current pecking order in the 'Steel City'.
At least that latter instance was a more recent triumph... weighing in at a mere twenty seven years ago. Let him have his little fantasy... Wednesday are a 'massive' club... and a much, much, bigger club than their Premier League neighbours. However, just in case irony and sarcasm isn't your thing, I wasn't being entirely serious about the current pecking order in the 'Steel City'.
But hey! I'm sure that we all have football rivalries that we struggle to view without our blinkers on sometimes, don't we!? Been there, done that and had enough egg of my face to provide a substantial breakfast for a whole army.
Arriving in Sheffield today, amid a wind and rain storm of neat tsunami proportions, I was quite relieved to see that the home side had Tweeted that the game was still on, but became slightly worried upon entering the ground, fifty minutes before kick-off, when a steward told me to hang on to my ticket, which would be valid to use whenever the game was played if it was called off this afternoon... I'm not sure if anyone was brave enough to tell this to the people filtering into the far end of the ground who'd travelled up all the way from Bournemouth on such a foul day.
But the teams came out to do their pre-match drills and following what amounted to little more a cursory nod towards the pitch by the referee, it was game on. Although Manchester City v West Ham United across the other side of the Woodhead Pass had fallen foul of the weather and wouldn't be going ahead. Having driven back across the M62 from Salford City last night, that didn't surprise me.
But the teams came out to do their pre-match drills and following what amounted to little more a cursory nod towards the pitch by the referee, it was game on. Although Manchester City v West Ham United across the other side of the Woodhead Pass had fallen foul of the weather and wouldn't be going ahead. Having driven back across the M62 from Salford City last night, that didn't surprise me.
The visitors game-plan of thwarting the Blades with five men across the middle of the park, worked to a point, as the Cherries intercepted passes and snaffled up the ball at will, particularly inside the opening twenty minutes. The visitors were much better moving the ball forward into attacking positions than I was expecting them to be, but any admiration I had for their attempts to dominate play and the tactical nous of of Eddie Howe, was somewhat dissipated, by their frequent bouts of gamesmanship, whereby their players systematically spent an embarrassing amount of time going to ground and staying there, in an attempt to break up the flow of the game and run the clock down.
If the Bournemouth players haven't all had their flu jabs, then there could be an epidemic breaking out on the south coast any time soon... and they would only have themselves to blame for that, as a consequence of spending so much time rolling around on the rain sodden Bramall Lane pitch for most of the afternoon.
On a wet and windy afternoon, it took a while for United to find any kind of rhythm and get into their stride, amid the congested midfield... and while they were still struggling to get a grip on the game, the visitors deservedly took the lead, when Harry Wilson's blocked shot fell into the path of Callum Wilson who swept the ball into the roof of the net, before he celebrated in front of the Shoreham Street 'Kop', much to the annoyance and chagrin of the home crowd.
(C) Wilson is the first and only ever Bournemouth player to score for England, when he netted on his international debut, in a friendly against the USA in November 2018.
Wilson's goal signalled that it was time for the Blades to get their act together and Wilder's side clawed their way back into the game, showing that they weren't just a one trick pony, with just the one style of play, but that they could adapt to a combat Bournemouth's approach and were more than capable of grinding out and fashioning an 'ugly win', when the necessity arose.
Oli McBurnie and Billy Sharp emerged as just the kind of players that the home side needed to overcome their well organised opponents, as a double pronged battering ram style tag team... and it was the latter, currently serving the Blades for his third spell at the club, who levelled things up in first half stoppage time. The pall pinged around the visitors area as Enda Stevens' corner kick was cleared back towards him and he whipped in a cross that John Egan connected with, but his shot was blocked and rebounded to Sharp, who does precisely what it says on the flag hanging up at the side of the 'Kop', in tribute to the thirty-four year old striker, that many people wrote off and said was past it and not good enough to cut it in the Premier League.
For the record, Sharp's first Premier League goal for the Blades this term, was back in August, when he netted an eighty-eighth minute equaliser in an away game at... AFC Bournemouth!
Norwegian international Sander Berge, who recently became the Blades record signing at £22 million, didn't really get involved too much this afternoon, as he laboured to get acclimatised to the frenetic battle, in difficult conditions and Bournemouth's 'shit-housing' tactical approach. and he was replaced on the hour, with what proved to be an inspired switch, by John Lundstram.
Billy Sharp, having done his bit was also replaced in the seventy-fourth minute by Lys Mousset, who had joined United for £10 million in the Summer from today's visitors, for whom he had joined for €7.3 million from Le Havre in 2016.
The second-half was an entertaining affair, with both sides having their moments and evidently not settling for a draw.
The hosts on-loan keeper, Dean Henderson, who has been at Bramall Lane for the past two seasons from his parent club: Manchester United, pulled off a quite outstanding save to keep his side on level terms, when Adam Smith's cross was flicked on by (C) Wilson to Ryan Fraser who looked odds on to score with a sweetly struck shot, but Henderson reacted quickly and thwarted the Scotland international winger.
The sun was now shining brightly... and it was just like a Summer's afternoon (as Summer afternoon's go in Antartica), as this enjoyable game headed towards it's conclusion.
With just six minutes remaining, Mousset (it was bound to be him) rolled a sideways pass to Lundstram inside the visitors area and he spanked the ball past Aaron Ramsdale, to earn a hard fought win for the hosts.
Nathan Ake was thrown into the mix up front from his defensive berth for the Cherries during the closing minutes... and he almost equalised, but the Blades held on for the three points.
FT: Sheffield United 2 v AFC Bournemouth 1
Due to the Premier League's staggered Winter break, neither of these two sides now play again until Saturday 22nd February, when AFC Bournemouth travel to Burnley and Sheffield United are back at Bramall Lane for a game against Brighton & Hove Albion.
I will be back in that there Yorkshire on Tuesday night, when Barnsley entertain Birmingham City at Oakwell. Hopefully it won't be quite as cold as it was today, because I'm getting nesh in my old age.
