Since this article was published, this match has been postponed due to the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Hoping to strengthen their position at the top of the Championship table, Sheffield United will welcome Rotherham United to Bramall Lane on Saturday.
The Blades find themselves unbeaten in the last seven league outings with 17 points on the board, while their visitors sit seventh with 10 points following their promotion last year.
Match preview
© Reuters
On the back of an opening-day defeat away at Watford, Sheffield United have quickly established themselves as one of the teams to watch in the Championship promotion race this season, now boasting a seven-game league unbeaten run built on the foundations of their eye-catching home form.
Victories at Bramall Lane over Millwall, Sunderland and Blackburn Rovers, alongside a 2-2 draw away at Middlesbrough, quickly improved the Blades' standing, before they travelled to Luton Town and forced a 1-1 draw thanks to Oli McBurnie's second-half equaliser.
Their perfect home record was then maintained with a dominant 4-0 win over Reading, as McBurnie opened the scoring and Iliman Ndiaye chipped in with a goal alongside a brace from Anel Ahmedhodzic, and Paul Heckingbottom's side would most recently travel to Hull City last Sunday in search of a first away victory of the campaign.
McBurnie gave them a first-half lead with his third goal in as many games, and, after fighting hard to protect their advantage, the Blades saw the points all but sealed in the 75th minute as Sander Berge netted their second, keeping them at the top of the division with 17 points from eight games as a result.
Now in even higher spirits following a hard-fought away win, Sheffield United will also take plenty of confidence from their eye-catching form at Bramall Lane and will aim to make it five wins from five on home turf on Saturday.
© Reuters
Rotherham United, meanwhile, will make the short trip across South Yorkshire hoping to end that perfect record, having enjoyed a positive start of their own this season.
Following another promotion to the Championship under the management of Paul Warne last time around, the Millers have managed to accumulate 10 points thus far, while having a game in hand on most sides around them, with only one league defeat on their record.
That singular loss followed an important 2-0 home win over Birmingham City, as they travelled to fellow promoted side Sunderland and were comfortably beaten 3-0 with Ross Stewart netting a brace and Jack Clarke adding a third.
Hoping to bounce back from that disappointing result, the Millers faced another tough test at home to newly-relegated Watford last time out, but they were able to take an early lead through Richard Wood, and after Vakoun Issouf Bayo levelled the contest on the half-hour mark, the South Yorkshire outfit were still left pleased with a point.
Having now given themselves a crucial start in their bid to survive the drop this season, Rotherham will aim to keep building confidence with what would be an impressive scalp at the weekend.
- D
- W
- W
- D
- W
- W
- W
- D
- D
- W
- L
- D
- D
- D
- L
- W
- L
- D
Team News
© Reuters
Sheffield United continue to contend with a long injury list, as defenders Jack Robinson, Ciaran Clark, Jack O'Connell and Jayden Bogle remain out of action alongside midfielders John Fleck and Ben Osborn and captain Billy Sharp.
Their defensive concerns were worsened even further away at Hull, as Max Lowe was forced off with an injury, meaning Rhys Norrington-Davies will shift out to a left-wing-back role with Chris Basham joining John Egan and Anel Ahmedhodzic in the back three from the outset.
Elsewhere, Manchester City loanee Tommy Doyle will again join Oliver Norwood in midfield, and, while there is plenty of competition for attacking spots with the likes of Rhian Brewster, Reda Khadra and James McAtee pushing for starts, Iliman Ndiaye, Sander Berge and Oli McBurnie will not be easily displaced, and Heckingbottom could opt to keep the front three unchanged given their impressive form.
After an impressive result against Watford, Rotherham may travel to Bramall Lane unchanged, with defenders Grant Hall and Cameron Humphreys remaining sidelined by injuries.
Given those absences Lee Peltier and Wes Harding could again play in a back three alongside captain Richard Wood, who has netted four goals from defence so far this season, while Dan Barlaser, Oliver Rathbone and Ben Wiles are all set to keep their places in midfield.
Cohen Bramall and exciting Arsenal loanee Brooke Norton-Cuffy should offer attacking support from wing-back roles, while Chiedozie Ogbene will lead the line alongside either Tom Eaves or Conor Washington, who was a member of the Sheffield United squad that won promotion to the Premier League in the 2018-19 campaign.
Sheffield United possible starting lineup:
Foderingham; Basham, Egan, Ahmedhodzic; Baldock, Norwood, Doyle, Norrington-Davies; Berge, Ndiaye; McBurnie
Rotherham United possible starting lineup:
Johansson; Harding, Wood, Peltier; Norton-Cuffy, Rathbone, Barlaser, Wiles, Bramall; Washington, Ogbene
We say: Sheffield United 2-0 Rotherham United
Rotherham have certainly shown their ability to compete in the Championship so far this season, but the Blades' impeccable home form should be just too much for Warne's men to overcome, and we see Sheffield United taking all three points on Saturday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
