Three wins on the bounce and suddenly the world is looking a whole lot rosier for passionate Blades fans. They had to endure taunts after back-to-back defeats against Swansea and Middlesbrough at the start of the season, but they have roared back to form in the past few weeks. The odds on them achieving promotion have plummeted and once again Sheff Utd are peering down on Wednesday from a lofty position in the Championship table. They have been attacking with dynamism and panache of late and there is now every reason to feel positive about the weeks and months that lie ahead.
The first two games of the season were always going to provide an almighty challenge. First up were Swansea, just relegated from the Premiership, followed by a trip to the Riverside to face a strong Middlesbrough side. They were unlucky to lose 2-1 to Swansea, while the 3-0 defeat against Boro does not look so bad after seeing Tony Pulis’ men go on to beat Birmingham, Bristol City and West Brom to nil in their next three games and join Leeds at the top of the table.
The Blades then went on to show their quality in beating QPR, Norwich and Bolton in their next three games. That has seen them shoot all the way up to seventh in the table, but they are level on points with fourth placed Aston Villa. It is early days, but the signs are encouraging for Sheff Utd supporters. Check a review of the world’s best betting sites, find a reputable bookmaker and you will see that the odds on the Blades being promoted have dropped all the way down to 4/1 with some sites.
Next up they face Aston Villa at Bramall Lane and that will be a great opportunity to gauge just how serious a challenge Chris Wilder’s men can mount this season. Last season’s beaten playoff finalists were rescued from the brink of financial ruin when billionaires Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens swooped in to invest in the club.
Championship promotion specialist Steve Bruce remains in the dugout, star play Jack Grealish still provides the creative fulcrum of the side after bids from the likes of Tottenham were rejected, and the bulk of last season’s squad has been retained. They too have taken nine points from their first five games, but unlike Sheff Utd, Bruce’s troops remain unbeaten. They beat Hull and Wigan in their first two games, and they have since recorded consecutive draws against 10-man Ipswich, Reading and Brentford. They fifth in the betting to be promoted, behind only Leeds, Middlesbrough, Brentford and West Brom. Then you find Stoke, before Sheff Utd and Nottingham Forest.
Aston Villa beat Sheff Utd 1-0 at Bramall Lane in January, so it also provides a great chance of revenge. Wilder tried to deflect pressure away from his team and heap it on Bruce’s. “We’ve got a great game coming up, one where we’ve got nothing to lose and where we can go out and really enjoy it,” he said. “If we can get something from that, then we’ve had a pretty good start to the season.”
Netherlands winger Anwar El Ghazi, valued at around £7m, Atletico Madrid’s André Moreira and Scotland midfielder John McGinn have all joined the Villa squad since the billionaires inject some cash in the club. They are a strong team, but Sheff Utd are at home and they will be desperate to maintain the momentum they have built up in the past few weeks. “I don’t want us to be a spike side, one who thinks, ‘we’ve had a couple of wins so now we can drop off,’” said Wilder. “We try and set them up and make decisions, make substitutions. But they, the players, are the ones who go out there and do the business. So when things go well, the deserve the credit.”