Wolves were the obvious favorites going into this game, with the club having the chance to move up to 8th. The game would become a scrappy affair, with Sheffield United looking to dominate physically, especially after Pablo Sarabia scored the winner 30 minutes in. Wolves scored with a brilliantly taken header from Sarabia and managed to see out the last 45 minutes and keep it at 1-0.
Sheffield Utd were lucky to have eleven players on the pitch, with teammates Jack Robinson and Vinícius Souza getting into a physical altercation just after the first goal of the game.
The second half began and it was a whole different ballgame, Rhian Brewster caused Wolves endless problems. O’Neil’s side just couldn’t get going and were lucky not to concede in the second half. Despite the best effort from Chris Wilder’s team, Wolves held on to their lead and won 1-0. The Blades remain bottom of the Premier League table.
BBC Match Of The Day 2 revealed that: “This is the quickest Wolves have hit 40 goals in a top flight campaign since 1971/72 campaign.”
Player Ratings - Wolverhampton Wanderers
Jose Sa - 7/10 - Not much to do today, but when called upon did his job he did so. He also got an additional clean sheet for Wolves on top of this.
Nelson Semedo - 7/10 - Had a few moments on the attack, not as much input in the second half along with the rest of the back line, but did enough to secure the clean sheet. Semedo also picked up a yellow card.
Max Kilman - 6/10 - Looked very out of character today and uncomfortable, very poor in the second half.
Craig Dawson - 6/10 - Similar to Kilman, looked uncomfortable and struggled to play in a high line today.
Toti Gomes - 7/10 - One of the better players today, did enough both at the back and on the attack, looking stronger and stronger in each game. However he picked up a yellow card in stoppage time.
Rayan Ait-Nouri - 7/10 - At times looked shaky at the back, but was very influential going forward - especially compared to the rest of Gary O’Neil’s defence - contributed a brilliant assist as well.
Joao Gomes - 6/10 - Gomes looked like a different player to what he did when playing against Tottenham Hotspur, he struggled with the physicality battle in midfield at times.
Mario Lemina - 7/10 - Lemina was consistent when attacking and defending. He continued to show his class even in physical situations.
Pablo Sarabia - 8/10 - Secured the winning goal for Wolves which was a stunning header. However, despite the well-taken goal, he was limited to only a few chances in the game and was especially quiet in the second half.
Hwang Hee-Chan - 6/10 - Had very little impact in the game, just like many seemed to struggle against Sheffield United’s defence, Hee-Chan also slipped into that cycle today.
Pedro Neto - 8/10 - Neto was the most threatening on the pitch today out of all the attack, he was never scared to run at the Sheff Utd defence. He did as much as he could today considering the challenges.
Substitutes
Matt Doherty - N/A - Not enough game time to have an impact on the game.
Tommy Doyle - 5/10 - Had little to know impact on the game, but did enough to see the game out and secure the win.
Jeanricner Bellegarde - 5/10 - Didn’t cause a threat to SUFC, just had a few nice tricks with the ball but kept quiet by their defence for most of the time.
Player Ratings - Sheffield United
Ivo Grbić - 6/10 - He did alright when he was called upon and restricted Wolves to very few chances, but did concede Sarabia’s goal.
Anel Ahmedhodžić - 6/10 - Provided his team with a strong defence that blocked the majority of Wolves’ shots but picked up a yellow card 72 minutes in.
Auston Trusty - 7/10 - Had some of the most significant influences on Sheffield United’s game. He almost made it 1-1 in the closing stages of the match with a touch which just skimmed the back post.
Jack Robinson - 5/10 - Had a lack of notable input but clashed with Souza during the game, shows the desperation that Sheffield Utd were facing.
Jayden Bogle - 6/10 - Played the full 90 minutes and attempted to block multiple shots from O’Neil’s side but ultimately lost the game.
Oliver Norwood - 5/10 - Lack of notable input and was brought off 82 minutes into the game.
Vinícius Souza - 5/10 - Lack of notable input and was brought off 82 minutes into the game, he also got into a bust-up with Robinson during the match.
Gustavo Hamer - 6/10 - Had some drive in midfield and pushed the play forward to contribute to the attack of Brewster and James McAtee.
Yasser Larouci - 5/10 - Lack of notable input and was brought off 72 minutes into the game.
James McAtee - 7/10 - Had a shot blocked by Jose Sa in the early stages of the first half, could have sent Sheffield United 1-0 up and it would have been a completely different ballgame. He created pace high up the line for the Blades.
Rhian Brewster - 7/10 - Put up the most barriers for Wolves out of the whole of Sheffield United’s attack. He had multiple shots on target blocked by Jose Sa.
Substitutes
Oli McBurnie - N/A - Lack of notable input.
Tom Davies - N/A - Lack of notable input.
Ben Osborn - N/A - Lack of notable input.
William Osula - N/A - Lack of notable input.