Sheffield United v Hull: Back the Blades to win to nil | OneFootball

EFL Championship

Sheffield United have won three on the spin

Promotion-chasing Sheffield United welcome relegation battlers Hull to Bramall Lane on Friday night. Betfair writer Mark O'Haire is backing the Blades to take top honours...

Sheffield United v HullFriday January 24, 20:00Live on Sky Sports

Sheff Utd recover from poor start at Swansea

Sheffield United remain right in the hunt for an immediate return to the Premier League after the Blades came from behind to claim a 2-1 victory away at 10-man Swansea in midweek. The Blades were deservedly behind at the break following a bright first-half performance from the Swans, though Chris Wilder's troops bounced back after the interval.

Rhian Brewster's sharp finish right at the start of the second period gave Sheff Utd parity before Swansea suffered a straight red card shortly after. The Blades turned the screw from there and eventually found the decisive second when Harrison Burrows struck the winner from the penalty spot after Tyrese Campbell was brought down in the penalty box.

Wilder was quick to address his team's poor first-half post-match. He said, "We were miles off it in the first half. They were by far the better team in every department. We were just delighted we were not out of sight at half-time. We needed more energy. We got the early goal in the second half which gave us some energy and drive and then it was game on."

Hull fall short in both boxes

Hull remain deep in relegation trouble after losing 2-1 at home to in-form QPR on Tuesday night. The Tigers were trailing by two second-half strikes when Joe Gelhardt's excellent left-footed strike from distance proved a mere consolation for the hosts, who are level on points with second-from-bottom Luton coming into the weekend's Championship card.

City were fortunate not to have fallen behind early on but improved thereafter to enjoy the better of the first 45 minutes. Harry Vaughan was Hull's brightest spark, and proved a lively presence from the flank, though the Tigers struggled for inspiration elsewhere and their performance deteriorated in the second period to allow Rangers to take control.

Post-match, head coach Ruben Selles admitted there was a lack of clinical edge in both boxes. He said, "I'm not disappointed with the performance. I think the team was competitive, but I'm disappointed in the way we conceded the two goals and the way that we didn't take our chances when we should. The difference was in the two ends."

Blades rock-solid home favourites

Sheffield United have dominated this fixture in recent seasons, returning a rock-solid W6-D1-L0 when facing Hull in league action since the start of 2018/19. To make that record even more impressive, the Blades have conceded a solitary strike against the Tigers across those seven showdowns, winning the reverse match-up 2-0 back in September.

Sheff Utd 1.68 failed to win their three Championship fixtures over the festive period, though Chris Wilder's troops have since bagged three successive league victories to get back on track. The Blades have proven particularly formidable at their Bramall Lane base this term, delivering W10-D2-L1 here, keeping a remarkable 10/13 clean sheets on home soil.

Hull 5.90 have been incredibly inconsistent since Ruben Selles' arrival (W3-D2-L4). The Tiges chief is hoping recent additions Kyle Joseph, Eliot Matazo and Lincoln Henrique can provide his side with some spark on Friday night with the Humbersiders having W2-D4-L12 when facing top-14 sides, losing six of eight trips to teams outside the bottom-eight.

Blades backed to tame the Tigers

The obvious angle of attack is to follow recent head-to-head trends and back Sheffield United to win to nil at a tasty 7/5. The Blades have seen this wager pay-out in all 10 of their Bramall Lane triumphs this term - the hosts have conceded just three home goals across their last 12 second-tier contests (against Burnley and West Brom).

Chris Wilder's charges have posted W11-D1-L0 when taking on teams in 14th and below and have conceded a solitary strike in those 12 tussles - 10 saw Sheff Utd win to nil. Meanwhile, the Blades are allowing just 0.63 non-penalty Expected Goals (npxG) per-game at Bramall Lane, as well as giving up just 14 Big Chances across their 13 home Championship fixtures.

Hull have registered only 12 away goals thus far, with five of their seven defeats on their travels arriving without scoring. The Tigers are avergaing just 1.06 npxG on the road and may struggle to open up the Blades' imposing rearguard.

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Back Sheffield United to win to nil @ 7/5