Sheffield United vs West Brom verdict, predicted score, key stats and suggested bets
- George Dempsey
- 25 April 2023
Both teams have plenty to play for when Sheffield United host West Brom at Bramall Lane on Wednesday night, with the Blades on the brink of automatic promotion and Albion chasing a play-off spot.
Sheffield United can secure promotion to the Premier League with a win when they host play-off-chasing West Bromwich Albion.
Date, KO time and TV coverage
Championship, Wednesday, April 26, Kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports Main Event.
Predicted score
Sheffield United 2-1 West Brom
Suggested bets
Both teams to score
Key stats
Sheffield United have won five of their last six matches as they edge closer to a return to the Premier League.
The Blades have won back-to-back league meetings 2-0 against West Brom.
Both teams have scored in 13 of West Brom's 17 away matches, with the Baggies being shut out just four times.
West Brom's play-off fate is still in their own hands despite sitting ninth in the table. They'll be looking to make the most of their game in hand.
Team news
Ben Osborn (hamstring), Enda Stevens (muscle), Rhian Brewster (hamstring), Rhys Norrington-Davies (hamstring) and Jack O'Connell (knee) are unavailable for Sheffield United.
Adam Reach (muscle), Daryl Dike (achilles), Dara O'Shea (knee), Grady Diangana (foot) and Matt Phillips (muscle) are all out for the Baggies.
Nathaniel Chalobah had a scan on his ankle prior to the defeat against Sunderland and is expected to miss this game too.
Verdict
Sheffield United will be looking to bounce back from their weekend FA Cup semi-final defeat at the hands of Manchester City. There's little shame in losing to the best in the land, and the Blades gave a good account of themselves.
They should still be fully focused on the task at hand and you'd expect them to be pretty relaxed about it, too. There were two scenarios that could see United secure a promotion on Wednesday.
Regardless of what other teams do, a win and three points mean Sheffield United are back in the Premier League.
The Baggies will be hoping to spoil the party in South Yorkshire. Their damaging defeat against Sunderland on Sunday almost makes this a must-win game.
It was going well for West Brom thanks to a John Swift penalty in first-half stoppage time, but a brace from Dennis Cirkin means Sunderland have jumped above the Baggies into sixth place.
The saving grace for Carlos Corberan's men could be this game in hand, but they'd have preferred an easier opponent.
Sheffield United have lost four games at home this season, so it's not an impossible task, but it will be tough.
West Brom's inconsistent away form has been pretty representative of the Championship as a whole. You never quite know what you're going to get, but they have won their last two away matches.
The Baggies tend to score, netting in their last four and 17 of 21 away matches overall, and there's good reason to believe that this will become an end-to-end game at some stage.
Sheffield United can play a relaxed game safe in the knowledge that they're going to get over the line at some point. They'll want it to be Wednesday, but the point is they can play with attacking freedom.
West Bromwich Albion can't afford any more slip-ups and whilst this is a very tricky fixture, they have to throw everything at it. If they take the lead, they'll likely sit in and look to protect it. If they fall behind, they have to throw the kitchen sink at it.
However this game plays out, it's set up perfectly for goals as neither side will want to settle. Providing we get an early goal then an entertaining game seems likely and goals are a good bet.
