It doesn’t come much bigger than a Steel City Derby in the Football League and we’re anticipating another fiery clash underneath the lights at Bramall Lane this Friday evening.
A derby day victory would send the Blades to the top of the table, temporarily at least, but Owls boss Jos Luhukay may be fighting for his job as the Wednesday fans grow more and more frustrated with their team’s poor form.
Read on for Sheffield United v Sheffield Wednesday live stream options, team news, predicted XIs, stats and TV channel info.
When is Sheffield United v Sheffield Wednesday?
Competition: EFL Championship
Venue: Bramall Lane
Date: Friday, 9 November
Kick-off: 7:45pm GMT
Match preview
Sheffield United were among the frontrunners in the Championship at this stage last season, before running out of momentum and falling out of the promotion picture in the second half of the campaign. This year, they’re looking to keep up the pace with the table-toppers and as things stand they sit in third position with just one point off league leaders Leeds, meaning a win on Friday night would not only send the bragging rights to the red side of the city, but it would also send the Blades top of the second tier table, temporarily at least.
Despite losing out to Swansea City on the opening day of the season, it’s been at Bramall Lane where United have been at their best this season. Since that defeat to the Swans, Chris Wilder’s men have won five and drawn two of their next seven home matches, but have come unstuck in away defeat to Nottingham Forest and Derby County over the last couple of weeks.
It’s been an altogether more difficult season so far for the blue side of Sheffield. Having pushed hard for promotion in recent years and coming as close as a play-off final defeat to Hull back in 2016, the club seem to have lost momentum in the last 18 months and after an uninspiring campaign last time out saw them finish in 15th place, they were unable to strengthen the squad during the summer having been placed under a transfer embargo for breaching the English Football League’s profitability and sustainability regulations.
After a steady, if unspectacular start to the season, things have really taken a turn for the worse at Hillsborough in recent weeks and last Saturday’s 0-4 home defeat at the hands of Norwich City was the Owls’ fourth consecutive Championship defeat. As a result, the side have slumped to 17th in the table and some sections of the fanbase are now starting to call for the sacking of boss Jos Luhukay.
Could a derby defeat by the final nail in his coffin and spell the end of his time in charge at Sheffield Wednesday?
On paper, the home side have the stronger team at the moment and are in better form, so are quite rightly the favourites going into this match. As the cliché goes though, the form book is thrown out of the window on derby day – could a win in one of their biggest games of the campaign kickstart the Owls’ season, or will the Blades be celebrating going top of the table on Friday night?
Where can I watch live?
Sheffield United v Sheffield Wednesday can be viewed by UK residents on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Football.
Can Sheffield United learn from last year’s mistakes to remain in the promotion hunt?
Chris Wilder is the kind of manager that can’t resist tinkering with his squad when the transfer window comes around, but he seems to have found the right blend with this current crop of players and he could do worse than to trust them to keep this form up for the rest of the season. That said, the Blades don’t seem to have the same quality as the likes of Leeds and Middlesbrough, so they may have to settle for a play-off place. Ensuring that Bramall Lane remains the fortress that it has become in the early months of the campaign for the rest of the season could be the key to leading United to a long-awaited return to the Premier League.
Would a derby day defeat spell the end for Jos Luhukay?
Things are starting to look pretty desperate for Jos Luhukay and Sheffield Wednesday. A lack of activity in the market due to the club’s transfer embargo has undoubtedly held back the experienced boss, who has won promotion three times from the German second tier, but he still has the bulk of a squad that at times performance very well under previous manager Carlos Carvalhal at his disposal and the brand of football produced by the 55 year old has been at best uninspiring. In the current climate, four consecutive defeats is enough to make any manager worry about his job security but it’s hard to see how he can remain in the hotseat if his side lose out in the derby and slip closer towards the bottom three on Friday night.
Will the players be able to keep their heads in a heated atmosphere?
This is one of the most fiercely contested derbies in the country as two similar-sized clubs in one football mad city go head to head. The atmosphere at both Hillsborough and Bramall Lane last year was electric, and Wednesday had to cling onto the goalless draw away from home after going down to ten men. In a game like this with so much at stake, it’s always possible that things can turn nasty but as we have seen so often in these big derby games, the team that can keep their head the most are likely to have more freedom to play and thus create more chances.
Head-to-head
As you would expect for two well-matched clubs with such a fierce rivalry, there have been well over 100 competitive meetings between these two famous enemies and the record is actually incredibly close over the course of all of those meetings. In 142 total fixtures, the Blades are currently edging the overall record by a single win.
Last year’s meeting between the two sides at Bramall Lane ended in a goalless draw, but there was plenty of entertainment to be had in the reverse fixture at Hillsborough. The Blades raced into a two goal lead after 15 minutes, only to be pegged back to 2-2 before goals from Mark Duffy and Leon Clarke secured the points for the visitors.
Sheffield United wins: 49 Draws: 45 Sheffield Wednesday wins: 48
Team news
Defender Chris Basham returns for Sheffield United after serving missing out on the defeat to Nottingham Forest last weekend through suspension. Jake Wright has returned to training and could be considered for selection along with Mark Duffy who has been struggling with a hip injury.
Sheffield Wednesday have no registered injuries ahead of the derby, but boss Jos Luhukay could be tempted to ring the changes following that embarrassing home defeat to Norwich City last time out. Sam Hutchinson, George Boyd and Marco Matias are among those hoping to be brought in.
Predicted Sheffield United XI: Henderson, Basham, O’Connell, Egan, Stevens, Freeman, Fleck, Norwood, Clarke, McGoldrick, Sharp
Predicted Sheffield Wednesday XI: Dawson, Pudil, Lees, Thorniley, Penney, Pelupessy, Bannan, Joao, Reach, Nuhiu, Fletcher
Squawka Prediction
Sheffield United have been by far the better side of these two sides so far in the Championship season and they had the better of their Steel City rivals last season too. The Owls will be low on morale following four straight defeats and we expect the Blades to extend their unbeaten home run by winning here. 2-0.
Predictions & Betting Tips
Get the BetBull sign-up offer HERE – Ts&Cs apply. +18 only. BeGambleAware.org
1. Sheffield United -1 @ 11/8
This Wednesday defence has been shipping goals for fun of late, conceding ten times in their last three Championship outings. Confidence is low and with time running out for Jos Luhukay to turn his team’s fortunes around, we fear a demoralising defeat in the derby could be the final nail in his coffin here.
United on the other hand appear to be growing in confidence with each game they play at Bramall Lane. The Blades racked up four goals in their last home game, a win over Wigan Athletic and with attackers like Billy Sharp and David McGoldrick in their ranks, this could be a
Key Stat: Sheffield Wednesday have lost their last three Championship games by two or more goals.
Tip: Sheffield United -1 @ 11/8 with BetBull – bet here
Odds correct at time of publishing (07/11/2018, 13:25)
18+ only. Ts&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org
2. Billy Sharp to score at any time
Billy Sharp has enjoyed an incredibly prolific career in the lower leagues and since joining his boyhood club in 2015 he has performed excellently at the spearhead of the Sheffield United attack. In his 138 league appearances for the Blades, the striker has racked up a stunning 75 goals and at 32 he show no signs of slowing up.
In 14 Championship appearances so far this term, the former Southampton man has smashed in 10 goals, including a hat-trick in that 4-2 win over Wigan in United’s last home game. We’re backing him to score his first ever Steel City Derby goal here.
Key Stat: Billy Sharp has scored 10 goals in 14 Championship appearances so far this season.
Tip: Billy Sharp to score at any time with BetBull – bet here
Odds correct at time of publishing (07/11/2018, 13:25)
18+ only. Ts&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org
3. Under 2 Sheffield United cards
Whilst Chris Wilder has certainly injected some Steel City passion into this Sheffield United side, they aren’t the kind of team to lose their heads easily. They have a solid disciplinary record this season having not yet been rewarded a red card and they’ve only picked up a handful of yellows in their last few games.
Whilst Wednesday had a man sent off in the Bramall Lane fixture between these two last season, the Blades were able to keep their heads and were not shown a single yellow card. Although the hosts will be fired up in front of a sold out home crowd, they will look to control the game with the ball and not be dragged into the wrong kind of battle here.
Key Stat: Sheffield United were not shown a single card in their last fixture against Sheffield Wednesday
Tip: Under 2 Sheffield United cards with BetBull – bet here
Odds correct at time of publishing (07/11/2018, 13:25)
18+ only. Ts&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org
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