Sheffield United and Tottenham Hotspur will meet at Bramall Lane in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday, with both teams enjoying fine seasons in their respective leagues.
The Blades will be hoping to return to the Premier League after only being relegated two seasons ago. After falling short in the playoffs last year, Sheffield United look set to gain automatic promotion back to the top flight as they are sitting cosy in 2nd place with twelve games to go.
As for Spurs, they are enjoying a promising campaign in a Premier League season which has seen some of the traditional ‘big six’ underperforming. This has allowed Antonio Conte’s men to put in below-par performances this campaign, yet still find themselves in the Champions League spots and have a tie with AC Milan at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to negotiate.
The game acts as a test for the Blades’ Premier League credentials and for Tottenham, their best opportunity to get some silverware this season.
In the absence of Conte, Tottenham has done their manager proud by beating West Ham and Chelsea convincingly and keeping two clean sheets along the way.
Their admirable reaction to that 4-1 battering at the hands of Leicester and their ill-fated loss to AC Milan at the San Siro has come at a bad time for Sheffield United, who might have been smelling the blood of a wounded beast a few weeks ago, but now matters are different.
The hosts' form has been equally turbulent. Their impressive 3-0 drubbing of Swansea was followed up by two back-to-back defeats to Middlesbrough and Millwall, in which they conceded six goals. Paul Heckingbottom has instilled some powers of recovery as last week they beat Watford 1-0, but against a Premier League outfit, they will need to be much more consistent.
Tottenham's challenge of getting to the fifth round was a lot more routine than Sheffield United’s. Spurs cantered to a 3-0 away win over Preston, whereas The Blades beat Wrexham 3-1 at the second time of asking following that tumultuous 3-3 draw-up at The Racecourse Ground.
Team News
Sheffield United
Sheffield United will be without Billy Sharp (ankle), Rhian Brewster, Rhys Norrington-Davies (both hamstring), Enda Stevens (muscle) and Jack O'Connell (knee) due to injury, while George Baldock (hamstring) could be in contention for the matchday squad after taking part in training.
Tottenham
As for Tottenham, Hugo Lloris (knee), Rodrigo Bentancur (ACL), Ryan Sessegnon (thigh) and Yves Bissouma (ankle), all remain sidelined with long-term injuries.
Rotation is to be expected from the visitors considering their busy fixture schedule, with Pedro Porro, Davinson Sanchez, Japhet Tanganga and Ivan Perisic all pushing to start in defence, after everyone except Porro was an unused substitute against Chelsea.
Likely Lineups
Sheffield United: Davies; Ahmedhodžić, Egan, Robinson; Bogle, Berge, Norwood, Fleck, Lowe; Ndiaye, McBurnie.
Tottenham: Forster; Lenglet, Sánchez, Tanganga; Perisic, Skipp, Matar Sarr, Porro; Danjuma, Kane, Richarlison.
Key Players
Sheffield United - Sander Berge
The Norwegian has enjoyed a fine season with the Blades, with his defensive capabilities proving vital to his side’s position in the Championship.
His performances have attracted the eyes of many top European clubs who admire his industrious style.
He has also popped up with nine-goal contributions this season, but you would imagine his role in the team on Wednesday will be primarily to block any Tottenham creativity.
Tottenham- Harry Kane
This one is obvious, but should he start, Kane, is most certainly the man Heckingbottom will be trying to nullify.
Spurs have an array of attacking talent that Sheffield United will need to contend with, but should Kane play they will be coming up against a man who is fresh off the back of a landmark achievement in becoming Spurs’ all-time leading scorer as well as enjoying another stellar season, with already 20 goal contributions across all competitions this season.
He has been their star man since he arrived on the scene and will continue to be on Wednesday.
Match Details
Where is the game being played?
The tie will be played at Bramall Lane on Wednesday 1 March.
How can I watch?
The match will be streamed for free on ITV for UK viewers.
What time is kick-off?
Kick-off is scheduled for 19:45 in Sheffield.
