How Japhet Tanganga reacted to big Sheffield United moment v Leicester City - Footage emerges | OneFootball

The Blades captain scored his first goal for the club in their New Year's Day win against Leicester City

Sheffield United started 2026 on the front foot, continuing their climb up the Championship table with a 3-1 win over Leicester City.

After winning just one of their opening nine games this season, the Blades have won nine of the subsequent 16, and a campaign that looked to be disastrous for last term's play-off finalists now sees them equal points away from the relegation zone as they are from the top six.

It was a perfect home performance from Chris Wilder's side, and it was kicked off via their captain, Japhet Tanganga, rising highest from a Sam McCallum corner and nodding home for his first for the club.

Following the game, the 26-year-old addressed the fans and commented on his milestone moment for his new club.

Japhet Tanganga reacts to his first Sheffield United goal

On the day that the January transfer window opened, it was one of the few successful summer signings at Bramall Lane who took the headlines for Sheffield United in their first win of the new year.

Tanganga, who signed from Millwall towards the tail end of the window, has been a standout performer in an otherwise middling Blades outfit, who are starting to find their feet once more in the Championship.

After netting his first for his new side, the 26-year-old said, "Really happy to get my first goal for the club. It's been a long time coming, but we're finally here. Hope you have a great 2026."

Tanganga said it had been a long time coming, and he wasn't wrong, having generated 1.23 expected goals already this season without finding the back of the net.

This time, he made no mistake, and Jakub Stolarczyk in the Leicester goal couldn't do anything to stop the bullet header from finding the top left corner.

Sheffield United start as they mean to go on with first win of 2026

Sheffield United are now the same number of points above the bottom three as they are the top six, and with 21 games still to go in the Championship season, you wouldn't put it past Chris Wilder's side to continue their climb.

No team has picked up more points in the last 10 games in the second tier than Sheffield United, and their record since the cult-hero manager returned on September 15 would have them seventh, a point behind the top six.

Only Hull City, Ipswich Town and Coventry City have won more games than the Blades since Wilder came back for a third spell, and you get the impression that, if Sheffield United get the January transfer window right, it'll only be a matter of time before they're looking even further up the table.

Right now, it's all about taking things one game at a time and continuing their steady climb away from the bottom three and towards the top six.