The Blades dug deep to grind out a point against an excellent Brighton team down on the South Coast. Sheffield United head into the international break picking up four points from their last two games with two massive fixtures on the horizon.
Player grades
Wes Foderingham: 7
He couldn’t do much to prevent the goal and made three or four excellent saves in the first half to keep the score at 1-0 at halftime. He denied Mitoma with a near-post save on the hour.
Jayden Bogle: 5
Struggled against Simon Alingra in the first half, who had too much success down that side. Bogle had a good chance for a shot on goal from a corner but sliced his effort wide. However, he later redeemed himself by delivering a quality pass from Hamer’s ball, leading to Webster’s goal. Bogle had another great opportunity to give the visitors the lead but dragged his effort wide.
George Baldock: 7
Displayed some frustration with a couple of challenges in the first half, as his teammates weren’t effectively challenging the opposition. He put in a great pass across the six-yard box, but Archer failed to react, missing a simple tap-in opportunity.
Auston Trusty: 6
Brighton managed to break through a couple of times in the first 15 minutes, and Trusty appeared unsure. He was caught flat-footed for the opening goal, with Buonanotte’s flick going through him. However, he played a significant role in the build-up to the equaliser, coming inside with the ball and finding Hamer.
Jack Robinson: 7
Robinson did very little wrong and was one of the few players who consistently made the right decisions. He came to the rescue with blocks and last-ditch tackles on several occasions.
Luke Thomas: 7
In the first half, Thomas had a tough job as Brighton doubled up down the right side, and Hamer failed to stay with his runner as the home side got behind United. In the second half, Thomas got forward more and had more involvement in the attacking third. His best performance for the Blades.
Oliver Norwood: 6
The only midfielder to get tackles in and show some quality in possession in the first period. 2nd half he dictated the play at times when the home team went down to 10 men.
Vinicius Souza: 4
A weak challenge for the opening goal set the tone for his performance. Souza struggled to cope with Brighton’s movement in midfield and was frequently found lacking. He was substituted early in the second half due to a back problem.
Gustavo Hamer: 6
In the first half, Hamer had limited impact, and Luke Thomas needed more protection, but he improved in the second half when United displayed more attacking intent and got the playmaker involved in good positions. It was Hamer’s pass that released Bogle for the equaliser. Set pieces were poor.
James McAtee: 7
McAtee had minimal involvement in the first half and was largely ineffective. However, like Hamer, he performed better in the second half when United was able to be more assertive. He displayed tidy possession and probed around the area until he began to experience cramps.
Cameron Archer: 7
For me his best performance in terms of pressing and also giving United a counter threat, often finding himself in one-vs-one situations on the halfway line. Also did much better to hold the ball up and bring midfielders into play.
Subs
Osborn 5 (Souza, 52)
Slimane 5 (McAtee, 84)
Osula N/A (Bogle, 90+5)