Despite the poor start, Sheffield United and pre-season top four favourites Newcastle United are separated by five points, outlining the rough start Eddie Howe’s side have experienced.
As of writing, the Blades are still in 17th place but that may change before Paul Heckingbottom’s men next kick a ball. United have already dropped five points through five games from winning positions.
Newcastle are 12th, but they could be even higher after dropping three points against 10-man Liverpool. They then lost on their travels to Brighton by three goals to one, before getting back on track with a 1-0 win over Brentford.
Two wins and three defeats isn’t a start most were predicting from Newcastle, although their fans surely expect another three points against a Blades team that have given a good account of themselves but ultimately fall short.
Opposition fans
“Nice confidence boosting 3-0 win please.”
“We should be beating these and Burnley, really.”
“Think we will win.”
“Huge game in lots of ways. If we win this and play well we could go on a bit of a run.”
“Need a bit of a performance here. Get everyone’s confidence flowing again.”
“3 points a must here, could potentially define the season. Lose/draw and then go out in the League Cup in the same week could potentially cause chaos.”
“Just a win will be fine and fully braced for it to not be free flowing, chances galore and a hiding though strong chance we could boss possession and chances.”
“I can see us grinding out a hard earned win. But it’s not going to be a pleasant match to watch.”
Newcastle United form
Newcastle has maintained an undefeated record in their previous 14 Premier League matches against newly promoted teams, securing seven wins and seven draws since their last loss, which was a 2-1 defeat at home to Leeds in January 2021.
The Magpies’ away record was nothing short of magnificent last season (3rd-best), though Eddie Howe’s team has encountered a challenging start to the season, losing both of their Premier League away matches. This marks just one fewer away defeat than they experienced in the entire previous campaign.
The last time they endured three consecutive away losses in the Premier League was back in April 2022.
Conclusion
According to the Opta supercomputer’s analysis, the odds are in favour of the visiting team for Sunday’s match, as it gives Newcastle a 42.9% probability of defeating Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.
Newcastle has an impressive track record against Sheffield United, emerging victorious in six out of their last seven league encounters. The only anomaly in this streak occurred during their previous visit to Bramall Lane in January 2021 when Sheffield United secured a 1-0 win through Billy Sharp’s penalty. This victory marked Sheffield United’s first win of the 2020/21 Premier League season, coming in their 18th game.
The Blades are still waiting for their first three points of this campaign. Could history repeat itself on Sunday afternoon and United pick up their first win against the Magpies?
