Blades have the cutting edge on Spurs
Written By: Robert Halter
It was the seventh occasion that Tottenham Hotspur had faced Sheffield United in the Premier League with each team winning twice and also drawing two matches. Eric Dier got the first yellow card for a reckless challenge on George Baldock, and from John Fleck’s free kick, the ball was only half cleared by Serge Aurier and Blades captain, Oliver Norwood had his strike from outside the box tipped over by Paulo Gazzaniga. In the tenth minute through an assist by David McGoldrick, a low drive from Fleck was smothered by Gazzaniga. On the quarter of the hour mark, Dele Alli’s through ball was crossed over by Aurier, but a miss timed effort by Harry Kane was scrambled into the side netting of the right post. Two minutes later, after collecting a pass from Tanguy Ndombele, a curling strike from Giovani Lo Celso, went out wide to the left. Norwood son got cautioned for pushing over Alli. Midway through the first half, from a miss placed pass by Davinson Sanchez, after John Lundstram collected the loose ball, McGoldrick drove a right footed shot into Gazzaniga. In the twenty fourth minute, from Aurier’s pull back, a strike by Heung-Min Son, flew high and wide over the top. Three minutes later, a deep cross by Enda Stevens, was put by Lundstram over to the right from the centre of the area. On the half hour, Norwood and Jack O’Connell combined, before Lundstram’s shot cannoned off the left post and the rebound fell to Lys Mousset, whose strike was deflected behind off Ben Davies. In the thirty third minute from a lay off by Moussa Sissoko, the ball was struck by Aurier, past the left post, at distance. In the thirty eighth minute, Davies’s incisive pass was put over by Son, before a left footed shot by Lo Celso, turned past the right post. Before the restart, Harry Winks replaced Ndombele. In the fiftieth minute through an Alli assist, after turning past Fleck, a curling strike by Son went past the left post. Two minutes later, McGoldrick set free Mousset, who turned around Sanchez before hitting the ball fractions past the left post. But Spurs responded in the fifty fourth minute, when from Alli’s through ball, a low drive by Son was clawed away from Dean Henderson, as he crouched down. But in the fifty eighth minute, the Lilywhites opened the scoring, when Alli’s pass was poorly put back by Stevens into the path of Son, who reacted by slotting the ball through Henderson’s legs into the centre of the net. But the Blades had a goal ruled out by VAR when Lundstram’s toe was ruled offside in the build up before Stevens delivered a low cross for McGoldrick to slot into the bottom right corner from very close range after one hour of play. In the sixty seventh minute, from Alli’s threaded pass, Son could not convert with a right footed shot in the six yard box, which missed to the right. Spurs later switched Alli with Juan Foyth. In the seventy seventh minute, Foyth was a provider for Winks, who had his shot saved by Henderson in the centre of the goal. But a minute later, the Blades drew level, as McGoldrick spread the ball out to Baldock on the right side of the area, whose cross flew over Dier and then Chris Basham, into the bottom left corner, before a VAR check was made and the goal stood. Foyth then picked up a caution for a clip on Fleck. In a final Spurs change Lucas Moura took the place of Aurier. In the eighty sixth minute, Son’s pass was crossed by Winks just past the head of Kane, before the Blades took off Mousset for Callum Robinson. Near the end, Lo Celso teed up Son, whose left footed shot at an acute angle was stopped by Henderson’s body. Basham then got booked for bringing down Son. In stoppage time, from Winks assist, a fierce shot by Moura at long range was pushed over from Henderson. A late change was made by the Blades as Luke Freeman took the place of McGoldrick, before the point earned by Sheffield United from a 1-1 draw at Spurs, left the Blades in a tidy position of fifth in the league table.