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Sheffield United were four minutes shy of their first Premier League win of the season, but Danny Welbeck salvaged a point for Brighton in a 1-1 draw.
The Blades also did it the hard way by having to play 50 minutes with 10 men after John Lundstram was sent off following a VAR review for a dangerous tackle on Joel Veltman.
In what has been the worst start to the season in Premier League history, Chris Wilder’s winless team thought substitute Jayden Bogle scored an unlikely winner (63), on his Premier League debut.
However, Brighton, who seemed to be struggling for inspiration, managed a late draw when Welbeck shot home from close range and they hit the post in injury time when Alireza Jahanbakhsh somehow missed from close range.
The result leaves the Blades without victory and last place in the Premier League. In total, Wilder’s side have been winless in their last 16 games, since a 3-0 win against Chelsea in July.
Meanwhile, Brighton is just two points above the relegation zone and has only won once at home in 2020.
How to fight Blades almost finished the race …
Clear chances were few and far between as Lewis Dunk went ahead and Aaron Connolly forced a decent save from Aaron Ramsdale, while Neal Maupay blocked two close range attempts.
Wilder felt the game was moving too fast in the direction of Brighton, so he decided to make a tactical change midway through the half, substituting wasteful John Fleck for striker Oliver Burke.
The change triggered his first significant attempt when David McGoldrick, scorer of both goals against United, saw a 20-yard free throw hit by Seagulls goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
The visitors were enjoying their best spell in the game at the time before Lundstram’s ejection halted their momentum.
Referee Peter Bankes initially showed a yellow card when the midfielder invaded the ball and pounced on Joel Veltman, before delighting the limited home crowd by updating the penalty to red after seeing a replay of the incident on an on-court monitor.
Playing with one more man should have given Brighton the perfect opportunity to end his sad streak at home, but his game was heavy.
And despite his numerical advantage, Albion almost got caught in the counterattack just before the hour.
Burke stormed behind Brighton’s advanced backline and, after removing the ball, the anonymous Enda Stevens opened wide.
Brighton continued to camp in the United half, but did not heed the earlier warning as it fell behind.
Burke found a volunteer run from McGoldrick behind and slid a ball back so Bogle was available to punch the cut through a strong touch from Adam Webster.
However, Brighton’s response was weak. Connolly headed wide with the goal wide open before the visitors broke and Burke squandered an excellent opportunity to make the game safe when he burned inside the area.
That lady came back to bite Wilder’s men.
Leandro Trossard’s ball in the box broke for Welbeck to drop his chest and crashed home from inside the six-yard box.
It could have been worse for them in the final moments, but Jahanbakhsh could only nod against the goal frame during a frenzied shot.
The Blades, who appear to be returning to a place similar to last season’s levels, deserved that final stroke of luck to clinch a deserved point.
Man of the match: Chris Basham
If something had to be sorted out, Basham was their man for the Blades. His 12 clear games were five more than any other player on the field as he adapted to switch from part of a defensive three to a highly intelligent footballer-style defensive midfield role. Only three players have made more than 12 punts in a game this season, just proving how relentless he was in defending his area.
Opt for statistics
- Sheffield United have won just two points from 14 Premier League games this season, the lowest total for a top-notch English team at this stage of the campaign (assuming 3pts / win).
- Bogle became the fifth player to score in his Premier League debut for Sheffield United, following Brian Deane (1992), Willie Falconer (1993), Rob Hulse (2006) and Billy Sharp (2019).
- Welbeck has scored his eighth Premier League goal as a substitute and his first since scoring for Arsenal vs West Ham in August 2018.
- Lundstram was sent off in a league match for the first time since March 2016 for Oxford vs Stevenage in League Two.
Whats Next?
Brighton has a seven-day break before their next game at West Ham on December 27. Meanwhile, the Blades return to action on Boxing Day with a home game against Everton.
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