da bet vitoria： [ad_pod ]
da betsson： Sheffield United are desperately trying to gain promotion to the Premier League this season.
The Blades are currently second in the Championship, ahead of Leeds United on goal difference and two points behind leaders Norwich City.
Marcelo Bielsa’s side have a game in hand but, as it stands, it will be Sheffield United and Norwich promoted automatically.
But do Chris Wilder’s men have the ability to stay up if they do gain promotion?
Football FanCast takes a look at the cases both for and against.
Biggest strength
Sheffield United know how to score goals. The Blades have a gluttony of strikers at their disposal, with Billy Sharp surely the best of the bunch.
Sharp has scored 23 goals in all competitions this season, while David McGoldrick is in double figures and Gary Madine has also hit the back of the net twice. Scott Hogan and Conor Washington are back-ups.
Their 58 goals scored this season is the third-highest in the league, behind only leaders Norwich and fourth-placed West Brom – they have 65 and 64 respectively.
Indeed, they scored four last time out as they thumped Reading 4-0, and have also been involved in 3-3 and 2-2 draws with Aston Villa and Norwich respectively since the turn of the year.
It cannot be guaranteed that Sharp would take to the Premier League like a duck to water – he has played just 18 minutes in the competition in his career, across two games for Southampton in 2012.
But, as it stands, it could be his goals that power them to promotion and beyond.
Biggest weakness
Sheffield United lack a plan B.
They tend to play with three-at-the-back and it can leave them open in defence, while their formation of 3-5-2 also relies on having two strikers up top.
That rarely works in the Premier League.
One would expect Wilder to dip his toes into the transfer market to strengthen his back-line if their season does end in promotion but currently, the signs are not good.
A back four would surely be needed in the top-flight, but the Blades use it so rarely it would take some acclimatising to.
Heading into the Premier League with a 3-5-2 formation is a good way to start yourself off on the back foot, with points dropped and goals conceded. Wilder needs to find a solution.
Transfer targets
Sheffield United need bodies more than anything else.
There isn’t a single player in the squad who can claim to be a seasoned Premier League campaigner and they need some general quality.
In goal, of course, Dean Henderson is on loan from Manchester United and will likely return to his parent club in the summer. The Blades could attempt to take him on a permanent deal but he has not played a single minute of top-flight football.
Fulham, once promoted, embarked on a scattergun recruitment approach and Wilder and his team should learn from that – the Cottagers are 19th and seemingly doomed – and implement a more measured approach in the summer if they do seal promotion.
But quality is the name of the game. The likes of Sharp, John Fleck and John Egan will surely be given a chance to prove their worth in the top-flight but they are not guaranteed to succeed.
Wilder will know that, and he should already be scouting for potential upgrades to his starting XI. If they are to survive, they’ll need them.