Defense wins you Championships. Isn’t that what the Bear Bryant quote said? Well, while it may not win Sheffield United any titles this year, Chris Wilder’s team have taken it to heart to become the surprise package of the Premier League season.
After gaining promotion from the EFL Championship last season the club, nicknamed The Blades, were labeled not sharp enough to last in the top flight of English football. In fact they were most bookies favorite to head straight back from where they came.
Instead Wilder’s side have the third best defensive record in the league behind de facto champions Liverpool and second place Leicester.
They currently sit 7th in the table seven points behind fourth place Chelsea, helped in part by keeping clean sheets in 7 out of the 21 games currently played. That included a 1-0 win over Arsenal in October.
A lot has been made of Dean Henderson’s performances in net, with many in the English media hailing him as David De Gea’s replacement at Manchester United once his loan at Bramall Lane ends in May. If that does happen finding a replacement will be vital to the long term future of Wilder’s men.
The other problem facing Sheffield United, and probably the most pressing one since Henderson’s loan runs until May, heading into the second half of the season is whether or not their miserly defense can keep it up to cover for a lackluster prowess in front of goal. While they’ve only let in 21 goals in 21 games they have also only scored 23 leaving them with the worse goal for record of any of the top seven teams. Only five teams have worse goals for stats in the Premier League and three of them take up the current relegation spots.
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If the defense can continue their rich vein of form Sheffield United may not win any Championships, but could achieve something much more beneficial, Premier League survival.
