Oxford United vs Sheffield United – Preview | OneFootball

Chris Wilder’s Sheffield United travel to Oxfordshire on Saturday afternoon to take on Gary Rowett’s Oxford United.

After losing their first three Championship fixtures of the season, albeit by a one-goal margin, Oxford have picked up three massive results over the previous three games, salvaging a pair of 2-2 draws at home against Coventry City and Leicester City, and they left Bristol with all three points last weekend after serving up a 3-1 win.

The Blades suffered yet another defeat, this time conceding a 90th minute goal at home against Charlton Athletic in Wilder’s first game back in the dugout. In truth, United barely threatened, conjuring up just one shot on target – a low free-kick straight down the middle of the goal from Gustavo Hamer. Whilst at the other end, Charlton broke on the Blades at will and on another day could’ve won by two or three.

The U’s have scored seven goals in their last three matches. To paint a picture of just how miserable it is being a Blades fan right now, Oxford’s seven goals in three games equals the same number of shots on target United have registered from inside the box all season (excluding the cup).

Transfer Business

Oxford United operated very efficiently in the summer transfer window, in my opinion. Bringing in a striker with bags of potential in Will Lankshear on a season-long loan from Tottenham Hotspur. Of course, Lankshear came up through the Sheffield United development team, so many Unitedites know of his qualities. And he’s already shown a glimpse of them this term, netting three goals in six Championship games.

Another smart addition is Brian De Keersmaecker, a permanent signing from Dutch side Heracles. The 25-year-old Belgian midfielder endured an injury-hit start to life in England, but has now played 90 minutes in three straight matches. Last season in the Eredivisie, he made 31 league appearances for Heracles, scoring five goals and providing three assists. It’s easy to see why the U’s are getting excited over a player who already has a couple of assists to his name.

Team News

Oxford may once again be without  Ciaron Brown, Matt Phillips and Ole Romeny, while Cameron Brannagan and Jack Currie could be touch and go for Saturday afternoon.

The Blades could have experienced midfielder Tom Davies available for selection for the first time this season. The former Everton man got minutes under his belt for the development team earlier this week in a victory over Huddersfield Town, as did several other senior players, in an attempt to improve match sharpness.

Oxford United’s Impact Player For This Game

OXFORD, ENGLAND – AUGUST 30: Jack Rudoni of Coventry City passes the ball under pressure from Brian De Keersmaecker of Oxford United during the Sky Bet Championship match between Oxford United and Coventry City at Kassam Stadium on August 30, 2025 in Oxford, England. (Photo by Alex Burstow/Getty Images)

The aforementioned Brian De Keersmaecker should have plenty of opportunity to impress once again for the U’s up against a poor Blades midfield.

Comparing his numbers that he’s averaged over the last 12 months to the rest of Championship midfielders, the Belgian excels in blocking passing lanes and winning the ball back with his positioning and anticipation (92nd percentile for passes blocked and 89th percentile for interceptions).

With the ball at his feet, De Keersmaecker isn’t a midfielder that is going to slow the game down and be conservative. Instead, he gives you the ability to play long effectively (ranking in the 82nd percentile for long passes completed). Given how easily Sheffield United have been exposed on quick attacks this season, this alone could cause the Blades huge issues on Saturday afternoon. He also ranks in the 96th percentile for switches of play.

De Keersmaecker is also a dual-threat midfielder in terms of progressing the ball; he’s averaged over five progressive passes per 90 (67th percentile), and he averages just under two progressive carries per 90 (80th percentile).

To add, the 25-year-old is in the 78th percentile for expected assists per 90, so while not necessarily the chief creator, he definitely has the ability to unlock a defence. Especially one that’s as leaky as United’s.

Sheffield United’s Impact Player For This Game

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 29: Tom Davies of Sheffield United celebrates after scoring his side’s first goal during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield United FC and Sunderland AFC at Bramall Lane on November 29, 2024 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

If Tom Davies is ready to start then United could see an instant improvement with him in the middle of the park. So far this term, the midfield has lacked defensive solidity, leaving the backline repeatedly exposed to counter-attacks, and it offers very little in terms of progressive passing and creativity.

The 27-year-old has had a frustrating time since joining the Blades, and that’s purely down to injuries; there is no doubt about the genuine quality Davies possesses.

Last season, Davies averaged over five progressive passes per 90 (ranking in the 76th percentile compared to other Championship midfielders). He also ranked in the 78th percentile for progressive carries per 90, showing that he’s good at moving the Blades up the pitch in multiple ways.

Additionally, he drifts into smart spaces and makes himself available for a pass in order to offer a progressive outlet, evident in his 61st percentile ranking for progressive passes received. While this isn’t an outstanding ranking, it is still much better than Peck’s ranking for this season thus far – 34th percentile.

I understand some may raise the point that “Peck has been asked to sit deeper under Ruben Selles last season”. That’s partially true. But the facts are simple: a double pivot’s whole purpose is to provide defensive stability to the team as well as flexibility in order to help build attacks in the middle and final third. We have seen nothing of that function whatsoever.

Hopefully, United will see a more competent midfield with Davies in it this weekend.

My Prediction

This is a crucial game for the Blades because I think, depending on how this one goes, more so performance wise than result, this will really set the tone for the next few weeks.

For example, as silly as it sounds, I think a hugely improved performance but an unfortunate 0-0 draw would be a more positive indicator to me than serving up another performance like the Swansea City away game or Charlton at home and ultimately seeing out a 1-0 win.

In the first scenario, myself and many other fans would begin to believe that we are now turning the corner and wins will eventually follow, providing we produce consistently good performances. However, in the second scenario, I’d be just as worried about United as I was three weeks ago. I understand the talk of lack of confidence, but, I wholeheartedly believe a team gets more confidence from performing to a very high standard but bad fortune (or an incredible goalkeeping display keeps it 0-0), over a subpar performance but grinding out a 1-0 win.

Oxford United are performing slightly better than the Blades in terms of non-penalty expected goals (7.62 vs 5.84), but the biggest difference is of course the conversion rate – Oxford have a 10.5% conversion rate, whereas United have a historically low 1.37%.

Defensively, Rowett’s team are again slightly performing better than United in terms of non-penalty expected goals given up (8.53 vs 8.62 – both slightly below the league average). Both sides have also allowed high non-penalty conversion rates, Saturday’s visitors to the Kassam Stadium boast the worst conversion rate against in the Championship (14.7%), while the home side are the third worst in this metric (12.6%).

Something to note heading into this game is the style of Oxford United. They are one of the most direct teams in the division (second-most direct team in the Championship). This is something that Charlton Athletic (most direct team in the Championship), Millwall (fourth-most direct team in the Championship), and Bristol City (eighth-most direct team) all have in common in terms of their attacking sequence time.

With all this in mind, my prediction for Saturday afternoon is a 1-1 draw. I’m expecting the Blades to naturally have an increase in attacking output, given Oxford’s similar xGA numbers to Sheffield United. However, United are clearly struggling against teams with a direct approach.

Stats taken from FBref and Opta.