Coventry City vs Sheffield United – Preview | OneFootball

As we head into the meatier part of the season, Sheffield United will kick things off away at Coventry City on Saturday afternoon, with a couple of familiar faces set to grace the pitch at the Coventry Building Society Arena.

Before the Championship was interrupted by yet another international break, Coventry City were losing 2-0 against Sunderland at half-time, before caretaker manager Rhys Carr inspired a second half comeback to leave the Stadium of Light with a point.

Meanwhile, the Steel City derby may not have been action packed or riddled with quality, but Sheffield United didn’t care because they claimed all three points over their bitter rivals at Bramall Lane.

Transfer Business

After losing Callum O’Hare to free agency in the summer, eventually joining the Blades, Coventry City replaced the attacking midfielder with Jack Rudoni, previously of Huddersfield Town.

Rudoni is a player that has impressed me every time I’ve seen him because of his willingness to attempt riskier things or the more audacious passes or shots. The 24-year-old’s main criticism is that he doesn’t get enough goals from the chances he gets himself in, however, perhaps he’s worked on that over the summer as he currently has two goals and is exceeding his expected goals numbers.

Despite only scoring one goal and providing one assist this season, I do like Coventry’s signing of Brandon Thomas-Asante, from West Bromwich Albion, because of the threat of his athleticism whenever he’s on the pitch. The last thing defenders want to play against is pace, and if he, and Ellis Simms, can discover form alongside Haji Wright, then the Sky Blues will climb up the table in no time.

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 01: Oliver Arblaster of Sheffield United and Moussa Sissoko of Watford during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield United FC and Watford FC at Bramall Lane on September 01, 2024 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

Team News

The home side could be without Ben Wilson and Jamie Allen as they still recover from their injuries. The big injury doubt is the one of Haji Wright. The American international went over on his ankle against Sunderland, which not only forced him off, it also led to him withdrawing from the national team. It’s unclear as to whether he will be fit to play this weekend. Meanwhile, Jake Bidwell is also out.

Sheffield United will be glad to welcome back well-rounded midfielder Tom Davies to the first-team. He will likely be named on the bench this weekend and given minutes off the bench. The two week break fell nicely for Kieffer Moore and Rhian Brewster who both had minor injuries which forced them to miss out on the Steel City derby.

The main worry for the Blades is Oliver Arblaster…

According to reports from The Star, the young midfielder went under the knife during the international break to repair damage on his knee. Now, there is a possibility that Arblaster may miss the rest of the season, per reports.

Coventry City’s Star Player for This Game

I mentioned him earlier and I think this man – Haji Wright – has the attributes to cause United’s right side of the defence problems, assuming he is fit and takes up the inverted left winger role.

The American has bagged seven goals in 15 appearances this season, three with his left, three with his right and one with his head. But it’s not just his goals that make him an effective player; Wright has explosive pace that can beat anybody, and I do wonder how Alfie Gilchrist and Harry Souttar would cope with that threat.

Often because he is so quick, teams will choose to double up on him, but that just frees up a man and could be potentially where someone like Jack Rudoni can influence things.

Wright is also good at applying pressure, so when the Blades attempt to play out from the back this weekend they must be aware of that.

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 01: Gustavo Hamer of Sheffield United and Moussa Sissoko of Watford during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield United FC and Watford FC at Bramall Lane on September 01, 2024 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

Sheffield United’s Star Player for This Game

I’m going to be boring and choose the obvious: Gustavo Hamer will score a 25-yarder against his former club, in front of the fans that still adore him…

Hamer may score against his old club, but playing against his old club isn’t the reason I’m picking him out. Before the Championship paused for the international break, the midfielder helped carve out United’s winning goal against Sheffield Wednesday by producing a smooth drop of the shoulder to evade Barry Bannan, and then poke the ball out to Callum O’Hare with the outside of the foot.

Hamer’s ability is far and above the Championship and it’s moments of brilliance like that which proves it. Besides, we haven’t had a direct goal contribution from the Dutch midfielder since his stunning free-kick against Derby County.

My View

Even though this is 17th hosting 2nd, this game will be very interesting to see what type of tone is set in the opening ten minutes. Both sides are fairly similar in terms of what they do with the ball.

One glaring difference though is that Coventry City put in far more crosses than Sheffield United, and I still can’t understand why the Blades have consistently been in the bottom four for cross attempts all season, when the main striker has been 6ft5 Kieffer Moore. As a matter of fact, the Sky Blues are second in crossing attempts averaging 17 per game.

I’ve already mentioned the huge threat that Coventry pose in attack and the stats suggest the same. They rank fifth in expected goals per game, while United rank at the lower end of the table.

Although they are way down in 17th and are just one point above the drop zone, Coventry City are massively underperforming; they should be eight points better off than what their current total is (16). The opta expected table actually has the Sky Blues ahead of United, which just shows how badly they are understand. And, perhaps even further underlines how harsh the sacking of Mark Robins was.

My Prediction

Coventry City games have been full of goals this season. In contrast, the Blades have been very measured in large parts.

Three of Coventry’s home losses have come via a 2-1 scoreline, and I think Sheffield United can compound their misery this weekend by the same score.