Sheffield United vs Manchester City
Sheffield United are in serious trouble. The Premier League’s surprise package last season is second from bottom in the table after just one point through the first six games of the new campaign.
The Blades lost away to champions Liverpool last time out, and their search to get their first win of the season may have to wait a little longer as they host another top title challenger in Manchester City this weekend.
City surprisingly find themselves all the way down in 13th place at the moment, although they do have a game in hand. And while they haven’t looked all that convincing thus far, the Premier League 2020 betting odds still expect them to leave Bramall Lane with all three points.
Talking Points
Sheffield United still struggling to score
Sheffield United’s sophomore slump continues. The Blades’ Premier League 2020 results now read five losses in their first six matches this season after falling 1-2 to Liverpool at Anfield last week.
Chris Wilder’s side was somewhat fortunate to take an early lead after winning a penalty, but they weren’t able to hold on as Liverpool proved too strong.
Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder coaching from the touchline
That was only the Blades’ third goal of the season, tied with Burnley for the lowest total in the league. But of those three goals, two have come from the penalty spot and just one from open play.
The attack remains the major concern for the Blades. They are dead-last in the league in terms of shots on target (12) and shots on target percentage (23.1).
Record signing Rhian Brewster got his first start against his old club Liverpool but is yet to make an impact for his new one. The 20-year-old still hasn’t attempted a single shot in 80 minutes of action this season.
On the other end, they are at least making their opponents work. Since their 0-2 defeat to Wolves on opening day — where they conceded twice within the first six minutes — the Blades haven’t lost by more than a single goal. That’s despite facing some tough opposition in Aston Villa, Leeds United, Arsenal, and Liverpool.
Man City becoming more conservative
Manchester City seem to have made a significant change to their style of play. After some shaky defensive performances early in the season, most notably in their stunning 5-2 defeat to Leicester, Pep Guardiola’s side has looked more conservative in their last few outings.
They had just 13 and 14 shots in their most recent league matches against Arsenal and West Ham and had just 17 shots combined in their first two Champions League group games against Porto and Marseille.
Instead of opening themselves up to create more shots, they’re simply holding onto the ball to prevent their opposition from attacking them.
But as those Champions League matches have shown, City don’t need all that many chances to get goals. They scored three in each of those games thanks to the quality of their players. Ferran Torres and Ilkay Gundogan scored in both of those matches, while Kevin De Bruyne looks back to his best after setting up two goals against Marseille.
Star striker Sergio Aguero is once again out after picking up another injury, so Torres may get another start alongside Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden in a fluid City front three against Sheffield United. Riyad Mahrez or Bernardo Silva could also return to the line-up.
City also finally got centre-back, Aymeric Laporte, back from injury, which figures to be a significant boost to their defence.
History
Manchester City and Sheffield United have squared off just four times in the Premier League era. The Blades have yet to score a single goal against City, who have won three of those four meetings.
City won their two matches last season, with Aguero scoring in both. He got the winner in City’s 0-1 victory at Bramall Lane, while he and Kevin De Bruyne led them to a 2-0 win at the Etihad.
Betting Tip
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Sheffield United vs Manchester City | Sheffield United Asian Handicap +1.50 @ 2.02 |
| October 31, 20:30 (GMT+8) |
Unsurprisingly, the SBOTOP odds for this match are weighted heavily toward the visitors. City are overwhelming 1.32 favourites to keep Sheffield United winless. The Blades have astronomical 11.00 odds to spring the huge upset, while a draw is at 4.60.
Having said that, there’s a fair case to be made for siding with Sheffield United on the Asian Handicap. For one, City could be somewhat fatigued coming off an away trip in the Champions League and will once again be missing Aguero.
Aguero’s absence could once again make it hard to break down a Sheffield United side that will be ready to sit back and defend for long stretches of the game.
City should still most likely win the game, but given the fact that they don’t seem concerned with trying to score loads of goals, the Blades might just be able to keep it close once again.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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The post Premier League: Man City Keen to Keep Blades Winless appeared first on SBOTOP.