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Having been in
the Premiership at the start, it has taken a long slog to
get back after relegation in 1994, but passionate manager
Neil Warnock has persevered with the Blades to restore them
to the top flight. His time in charge has been a
tempestuous one and he will surely carry on in the same vein
in the Premier League, but his charges (playing staff not FA
ones) will take that fire onto the field and as they showed
on Saturday, they will not show much respect for anyone,
leaving Liverpool to leave with a fortunate draw.
Having tasted
defeat on Saturday, we are playing catch up and need to win
to hurdle over United. It will be no easy match for
Spurs, with an expectant home crowd wanting to see them put
right the result at the Reebok stadium. There are some
players who need to show their true form, as this early in
the season, two consecutive defeats will cause some concern.
It failed to happen regularly last season, so to start this
season in that manner would be very disappointing for all
concerned.
Irish keeper
Paddy Kenny is the first choice, but will be pushed all the
way by Ian Bennett who has Premier experience with
Birmingham City. Neither can claim to be the biggest
of keepers, but both can be difficult opponents to beat.
Kenny is brave, to the extent of being a bit injury prone
because of it, while his footwork is not of the highest
quality, so closing him down at back-passes might be a good
idea. Bennett is good with his saves, but lacks inches
if crosses come in, which might help Spurs if they can get
their delivery right.
This might be
why Warnock brought in some hulking great central defenders
to stop any aerial threat from the opposition. Craig
Short will miss out with a torn thigh muscle, but Chris
Lucketti, Claude Davis, Leigh Bromby and Chris Morgan can
all fill the centre-half position. Lucketti had
flitted around the lower leagues, but has struck gold at
Bramall Lane. Whether he will get much playing time
remains to be seen, as ex-Preston defender Claude Davis
has been brought in as he was one of the best in his
position last season. Tall and able to dominate in the
air, he also has good skill on the floor, so Warnock will no
doubt hope for him to initiate attacks from his deep
position. Bromby was a talented youngster at Sheffield
Wednesday and was looked at by Spurs at one stage, but has
settled at the Blades and is still a good ball-player for a
defender. while some might recall Morgan from his Barnsley
days in the Premiership. Unkindly best known for his
hot-headed approach which has earned him regular rests
thanks to the FA Disciplinary committee, he is solid
defender, who Spurs will need to pull out of position to
make the most of the space in defence. Out wide the
highly rated Phil Jagielka has just signed a new deal and
has been in the England Under-21 squad, so his attacking
raids up the line will have to be watched, as will his part
in dead ball situations, as he has a good shot. A
similar future was hoped of Rob Kozluk, but injuries and
lack of form have held him back a bit, so Crystal Palace's
Mikele Leighertwood was brought in to add strength in the
full back position. Veteran Alan Wright is still
there, but has dropped a long way down the list of defenders
at the club. Another who was snapped up in the summer
was David Sommeil, who Young-Pyo Lee will remember as he got
a kick out of Sommeil at Manchester City last season.
A strapping defender, his pace may be lacking, but that may
be said for many of the United defenders, which could expose
them to real speed and may open them up with Lennon's runs.
Derek Geary is a defender I don't know much about, but he
started against Liverpool, as did another vet, David
Unsworth. Another who keeps going into his late
thirties, but his legs are not what they were and there is a
reliance on his experience on reading the game and Chris
Armstrong (no not that one) also featured in the game to add
height and power to the back line.
The midfield
looks a little light with wide men Keith Gillespie and Phil
Ifill providing an option to get forward from the flanks.
They will rely on them to defend too, but mainly hope that
they can ping balls into the middle for the forwards to
capitalise on. Both have been around for some time,
with Gillespie starting at Man U and going through Newcastle
United and Leicester City to get to Sheffield, while Ifill
started at Millwall, but has found a system he gets on with
at Bramall Lane. Michael Tonge was the main man in
United's FA and League Cup runs a few seasons back, but he
has settled at the club after initial interest from
Liverpool. Still dangerous at distance and from
free-kicks, he pulls the strings and will need to be shut
down quickly by our own midfield. Alongside him, he
could find Jagielka or Unsworth, both of whom have played in
this area of the team. Everton's Chinese defender Li
Tie was signed to add to the midfield roster, but has yet to
prove his fitness, although Alan Quinn will be a tricky
alternative, as he is good at running with the ball and can
thread through a pass for one fo the front line to seize on.
In that
attack are Ade Akinbiyi, Danny Webber, Rob Hulse, Neil
Shipperley and Christian Nade. Akinbiyi was unlucky to
be signed for big money by Peter Taylor at Leicester and his
reputation with fans has never recovered. His big
build has not stopped him banging goals wherever he has been
since his early success at Gillingham, meaning that his
physical presence might unsettle our new pairing at the
back. The same could be said for Shipperley, but his
legs are lacking the pace and spring they had and he is a
back-up striker these days. While Webber got rave
reviews at Man U and Watford, he has stayed at Sheffield
United for some time now and operates behind the front two
on occasion, breaking forward to add to the attack.
Short, stocky and powerful, he can sniff out a chance and is
a good finisher too. As is Rob Hulse, who arrived at
the Blades from Crewe via Leeds United. Another
goal-scorer, he was surprisingly sold by Leeds and United
will be hoping he will be the one who nets the goals to give
them survival. Not sure about the French striker Nade,
who is 21 and is a tall man. Might provide a target if
they are losing with time running out, I suppose.
As for Spurs,
this will be a test of character as much as anything.
Having done well last season and having achieved a place in
the UEFA Cup does not mean we have it made. there is
still a lot of work to be done to get the side challenging
regularly and it must start on the pitch. There is
still time left before the transfer window closes for
another four months, so I think Daniel, Damien and Martin
will be busy to bring in classy reinforcements (and by that
I don't mean Boa Morte) to add to the positions we need
strengthening.
As for this
game, Spurs must play cleverly. Humping the ball
forward to the Sheffield United central defenders will lead
to the ball coming straight back. It will be necessary
to get the ball down and play some quick passing one touch
football to get around the physically able United players.
But the visitors will also be looking to get the ball wide
and hit the front men early, so the defensive side of the
Spurs game must be tight too.
I think that
an early goal might help Spurs settle, but they have to
learn to be patient (as do our fans), because come the
European games, it won't all be wham bam, it will be long
periods of possession and making a forward move when the
opening appears. United will give it the gun for the
first twenty to try and break through and then if they get a
goal, try to sit back and defend it. For Spurs, it
will be an interesting contest of styles, but they need to
come through it and I think with Tainio back in midfield, it
might turn the game in our favour, to give us a win ...
PREDICTION
: - Tottenham Hotspur 3 Sheffield
United
1
For more information on
the opponents and their history, including full result history of
matches between the two teams, click
here.
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