An afternoon of high drama at Bramall Lane saw an exciting end to end game with six goals and the spoils eventually shared. United somehow stole a point from a game they had undeservedly looked like losing for much of it and in the process finally were able to actually hit the net more than once in a game; for the first time this season. The visitors will have been disappointed to lose a lead twice but could have no real arguments with the home side getting a point from a game in which the Blades created most of the chances. However, it does mark another home game where United have failed to win and it is looking increasingly like it could be a season of struggle with no sign of the appalling defensive mistakes abating that so far has riddled their season.
United restored skipper Chris Morgan to the line up and also could include Leon Britton after his own recent injury problems. Stephen Quinn got the start in preference to Nick Montgomery who was not considered fully fit to start. The Blades kept faith with Daniel Bogdanovic as they desperately sought to tackle a diabolical goal scoring record and has Ched Evans and young Jordan Slew on the bench. Burnley were without the suspended Clark Carlisle so Leon Cort came into the defence for the Clarets; but had a strong bench featuring Grant, Paterson, Alexander, Wallace and Thompson; all players that would arguably start for most Championship sides.
United began with De Laet playing at left back and Morgan partnering Nosworthy but it was still a 4-3-3 formation with Yeates and Cresswell operating either side of Bogdanovic. United began the game well and were on top in the early stages creating the first real opportunities. Yeates cleverly fed Bogdanovic who pulled the ball back for the onrushing Ertl whose first time effort was turned over by Jensen. Yeates was involved in most of United's early play but Burnley broke out and won a series of free kicks and corners. They had not tested Simonsen but a cross from the dangerous Eagles just evaded Iwelumo when it looked for all the world like the big Scottish striker would convert. Soon after there was another let off for United when Bikey headed down but the ball bounced over the bar when he really ought to have profited from appalling marking.
The game was now relatively even but it was united who managed to make the opposition goalkeeper work yet again just after the half hour mark. After good build up Quinn checked onto his left foot and hit a low shot that Jensen pushed away. Cresswell could not get to the rebound first and the Clarets scrambled the ball away. United won two free kicks in quick succession and Yeates took both. The first one was blocked but the second effort nearly led to the opening goal as the ball hit Jensen's right hand post with the big Dane beaten. United's rotten luck so far this season seemed set to go on. Britton was rightly booked for a late challenge before Rodriguez was then also cautioned. Jensen's clearance nearly ended in embarrassment when the ball caromed off Bogdanovic but fortunately for the keeper it bounced wide rather than into the empty net behind him.
The half time whistle was met by warm applause from the Blades fans. It had been an entertaining first half in which both sides had spells where they had enjoyed control and had good chances but the Blades had certainly more attempts on goal.
United began the second half by creating an early opportunity with Yeates firing a firm shot that Jensen palmed over but suddenly after looking the more likely side disaster struck for the Blades. From an innocuous ball in from the right from Eagles Simonsen came off his line but did not get there and MARNEY bravely stole in to flick the ball home with his head. It was a really sloppy goal to concede with no player tracking Marney and then the goalkeeper not getting there once he had opted to leave his line. Just as United were trying to re-group they unbelievably conceded another and it came via sloppier defending. Mears overlapped down the right flank and pushed the ball past De Laet. The Manchester United loanee seemed to have got out of the way of making a challenge but he did clip the full back and this was enough to send Mears to ground. The linesman signalled the offence and confirmed it was just inside the box. It was a soft decision but probably the right one as they had been contact no matter how minimal and De Laet was naive in his defending. EAGLES took the spot kick and converted confidently sending Simonsen the wrong way. Most of the fans inside Bramall Lane were stunned. It had been a relatively decent performance but the inability to score coupled with the weekly defensive mistakes had led to another desperate situation.
United needed to get a foothold back into the game instantly and they did that when Mears turned from hero to villain. The right back was too casual on the ball and this combined with him losing his footing saw BOGDANOVIC steal possession. He advanced in on goal and from the angle curled a beautiful and precise finish into the far corner. It was a well taken goal that was made to look easier than it probably was in reality. United were suddenly back in a game that they had looked to have lost in a crazy 10 minutes of football. United were now on the attack and Cresswell's shot squirmed just wide as Burnley were now on the racks. Fox was booked for a really poor tackle on Ertl with the crowd baying for a different colour of card. The offender was substituted not long after as Edgar took his place. Bogdanovic was strangely replaced just after the hour; a move which drew bewilderment from most united fans but it was revealed that the front man had been suffering with cramp. Evans took his place. There a further flurry of substitutions not long after with Thompson and Wallace coming on for Iwelumo and Eagles and then Lowton replacing Ertl. The youngster's first contribution was to pick up a booking after Calve's dash had put him into trouble and he was left with no option but to bring down Wallace. The stop start nature of the game had seen United lose some of the impetus and it seemed as if Burnley were now beginning to kill the game. However, suddenly the Blades were level and it was thanks to youngster LOWTON. There was more good work from Yeates who took his time and his centre fell nicely for the home grown youngster whose shot went in with the aid of a deflection.
United were now scenting victory and were throwing men forward. De Laet was replaced by former Burnley man Jordan and Yeates nearly forced another opening but suddenly Burnley had a chance of their own as Mears cross flicked the top of the bar. United were committing bodies forward in search of the vital winner and this proved to be their undoing as Burnley caught them on the break. After a Blades attack broke down, Burnley advanced at pace and with the Blades defence stretched and gaps opening up, Mears found RODRIGUEZ who took a touch and from the angle struck a firm finish across Simonsen into the corner of the net. The goal was scored in the final minute of the game but as the game re-started there was to be another 5 minutes of play due in large to Burnley's blatant time wasting throughout most of the second half. As United sought to salvage something from the game Burney almost caught them on the break again in stoppage time as Thompson was denied by Morgan. As the game entered the final moments Jordan swung over a cross and the ball fell for YEATES who despite the attentions of two defenders managed to find a yard and hit a low shot that went past Jensen. It was a fitting reward for the winger who had been the standout performer for the home side. The final whistle went not long after and the Blades had at least got something from a game they tried to throw away on more than one occasion.
United - It was an odd game as for the most part we did fairly well. It was enjoyable with lots of chances and goals. However, there was some awful play from both sides that led to many of the opportunities with little moments of real quality outside of Eagles and Yeates for either side.
In terms of the performance it was certainly an improvement on the Watford game. We created chances and made the keeper work. The football was mixed with some decent stuff and some aimless stuff. It is not quite the attractive stuff we saw in the early games but much of this seems to be down to the fact that we do not have the players comfortably in playing this way as I have said before. We had more chances all game and probably shaded possession but Burnley still looked dangerous and I always felt they would score with their first real effort on goal and so it proved.
However, the simple facts were we did not score (good keeping, bad luck more at fault than finishing) and then you always feel a stupid mistake is around the corner to lead to us conceding and so it proved. It was another individual mistake; from Simonsen this time and then when they made another stupid mistake moments after through De Laet it looked curtains. Credit for United for the fight back and when it went 2-2 I thought we would go on and win. However, the gung ho approach backfired so desperate United were to get another goal as they left big gaps at the back when they lost the ball and Burnley broke. It was schoolboy defending from the home side as they completely lost their shape. A Speed said we needed to make sure we got something from the game that we had fought so hard to get back into. The point was definitely deserved but it is still another home game we have failed to win and it is looking like a season of struggle at the moment due to the basics; not taking chances when we have them and more than that the terrible defending we are showing week in, week out.
There was a real mixed bag of performance individually with some good performances from Yeates and Bogdanovic and some really poor ones from others namely Cresswell, Calve and Quinn. With two hard away games to come we have to cut out the mistakes or it is really going to be a season of struggle. At least we did find the net today and did look dangerous but I do feel it may be time to ditch the 4-3-3 system. It is not producing results and I would love to see us play with two wingers (Ward and Yeates) and get the ball wide more and create more chances. We really need to get a win from the next two but I honestly cannot see it and with the poor home form alongside this I am a little fearful of where we could be in a few weeks. With no signings coming in we are stuck with what we have which is a mesh mash of a side. It is a very slow side and needs pace badly. It does seem we simply have no money as he has had 3-4 weeks now and I cannot believe Speed has not identified players in that time but think it is more to do with the fact we cannot afford wages/loan fees.
Simonsen 6/10 - He is still not showing the form of last season when he was impressive and does seem to be making a crucial mistake very other game. He was at fault for the first goal when if he left his line he should have got to the ball either with a punch or by a catch. Could not be blamed for the second or third goal. Ironically he did not have any saves of note to make as the few other chances Burnley created they missed the target.
De Laet 6/10 - Thought he played well first half and defended soundly and got forward when he could. He has a touch of class on the ball and looks to pass the ball at all times. However, he was daft at best in conceding the penalty and then seemed to go to pieces a bit after this and quite a few Burnley attacks came down his side. His touch and composure seemed to desert him. I think I would play him right back and Jordan at left back personally.
Calve 5.5/10 - After the initial decent start he looks relatively ordinary at best. He does not totally convince me defensively as he struggles with the basics, namely tackling and positional sense. He is good on the ball and tries to pass it which is pleasing but I am not convinced when players are running at him and at times Eagles made him look daft. He does not seem strong enough for the Championship and seemed tired after an hour of games.
Nosworthy 6/10 - Usually mixed back of solid headers, tackles, clearances and then total lapses in concentration which nearly led to goals being given away. The major issue with him is he will not stick to just doing the basics which he has all the attributes to do; pace, power etc. However, the number of times he slices the ball or dallies in possession is quite worrying.
Morgan 7/10 - Won usual amount of headers and tackles and actually limited the dangerous Iwelumo fairly well. Despite a solid performance I still but just felt from watching him today that he did seem to be holding back a bit and maybe he is still not totally fit.
Quinn 5/10 - Thought he was relatively poor again. He did not hide and does try and get involved but often his promise peters out. He had one decent shot and a few bits of link up play but all too often gave the ball away or wandered around aimlessly. He just does not have a football brain unfortunately and as a player he seems to be going backwards when at his age he should be developing.
Ertl 5.5/10 - Not his best day. He did not do anything spectacularly wrong but neither did he impose himself on the game. He is so slow that it makes it hard for him to keep up if we break at pace and when other teams counter his lack of pace means he finds it hard to track runners. It seemed to be Marney that was his man that scored the first goal. Just do not feel he is really effective in home games when we should be playing a more attacking style and approach.
Britton 6.5/10 - An up and down game for him. He showed undoubted moments of class when he did get on the ball and played some nice balls but he also seemed to be ineffective for long spells and actually also gave the ball away quite a bit too. However, it must be frustrating when he has the likes of Quinn, Ertl and Cresswell who lack the skills and the vision to link with him. I felt we did not control midfield as we perhaps should do when we had a 3 to 2 man advantage.
Cresswell 3/10 - Really, really poor. Struggling to see how he is getting a shirt week in, week out. The old adage about him being a hard working, solid pro is getting tired when you actually examine his contributions which at the moment are minimal. He barely wins headers, does not hold the ball up and is barely involved at all. He seems to just chase about and fall on the floor and looks a player on the downward spiral of his career. Needs dropping.
Bogdanovic 7/10 - Thought he did ok again and I feel he offers a lot more than Evans. The most noticeable difference is that he has some intelligence in how he plays the game and at least realises that his job as the main striker is to hold the ball up and link/bring others into play. He isn't very fast or strong but I feel something may happen when he gets on the ball which is again more than Evans when making the comparison. He took his goal well and I was disappointed to see him replaced as along with Yeates he was our main attacking threat but have read he was struggling which may explain things.
Yeates 8.5/10 - Excellent and easily our best player. His crossing was up and down all day actually and for the numerous good crosses he put in; he put some real shocker in too with several corners not beating the first man. However, he was direct and forceful all game in everything he did. He made several excellent probing runs and everything good we did seemed to come through him. He had quite a few efforts on goal and could have scored more. He made the second and scored the third and definitely deserved the goal for his efforts. It is maybe the first game where Yeates has done it for the full 90 minutes and now he has set his standards. He needs to ensure he is at least near to that kind of performance most weeks. Surely has to have a run in the side now?
Subs -
Evans - Came on but cannot remember many things of note he did really. At the moment I think Bogdanovic and eventually Henderson are better options. It seems another loan striker may come in too so cannot quite see how he fits in. It may be best for all parties if we try and recoup what we can in January and move on. He has been here now for 15 months and shows no signs of really 'getting it' in terms of what we need out of him.
Lowton - Played in midfield and looked ok. Got booked for a clumsy challenge but then he got in the box and scored and at least got ahead of the strikers a few times. He is a decent footballer though but at the moment I am not sure where his best position is but maybe a spell in midfield instead of Ertl or Quinn might be worth trying.
Jordan - Only played the final 5 minutes and stoppage time but he was involved in both the late goals. He seemed to go completely missing as Rodriguez stole in on his side to score but then at least made the cross for the Yeates goal.
Burnley - They have one of the strongest squads in the championship in my opinion and I felt they would definitely be in the top 6 before the season began. I still feel that will be the case. They do have a poor manager in my opinion but they have a very deep squad and currently the likes of Paterson, Wallace, Grant and Thompson can't get in the starting line up. They would walk into our side. However, for all the talent they have they are not really ripping teams to pieces and are sat just outside the playoffs currently which is below where I expected them to be.
They will be gutted not to win today but overall they cannot say that United did not deserve at least a draw. Burnley did have 2 or 3 other chances outside of the goals but I honestly cannot remember a save Simonsen made outside of these three goals. They showed some good football and have some good individual players but also evidenced some woeful defending and never looked totally convincing.
At the back Jensen made some good saves but I always think he can be beaten as he struggles to get down to low shots as shown today when we scored a few and nearly had some more. I think Grant will eventually replace him. At the back Bikey and Cort were very clumsy and lucky not to be penalised for more fouls. If we had some pace and someone who could turn them I feel we would have scored even more goals. The full backs Fox and Mears like to get forward and caused some real problems but also both struggled badly with Yeates all day. Mears made two goals but gifted one and was culpable in the second when he allowed Yeates too much time to cross. In the middle of the park I felt Marney, Elliott and Cork won the battle for the most part and seemed to pass the ball better than their opponents. Eagles was outstanding and was Burnley's best player and was a constant threat. He is not a regular in the Burnley side but maybe he saves his best games for the Blades as he always seems to be a thorn in our side. Rodriguez looks a promising young player and showed a few clever touches but did not really look a goal threat until the death when he took his goal very well; aided by having all the time in the world. Iwelumo is a dangerous player who always seems to score against us but did not have much of an impact. Really surprised Paterson and Wallace do not start as they are two of the better players outside the Premiership. Amusing to see Laws have his hands in his head after his little victory jig moments earlier had been for nothing. I do think he should be getting more out of a talented squad but do fully expect them to be up there at the end of the season.
Officials - Eddie Ilderton. He did ok for the most part. I cannot disagree with any of the yellow cards. Britton for us and then Fox for Burnley may with another referee have been dismissed for two very late and cynical tackles but at least he was consistent with that he did which has been a failing of many referees at the Lane this season. He at least added on time that allowed us to level as Burnley's time wasting was getting ridiculous. He maybe could have booked a few of their players. The only other gripe I would have is that Bogdanovic was unlucky not to be given several free kicks as the Burnley centre backs were often manhandling him as the ball came towards him. I know he is not the most physical of players but they were still fouls. I have no complaints about the penalty at all and whilst he went to ground easily; it was a penalty as there was contact. If it had been the other end we would have all screamed for a spot kick.
Crowd - The crowd were relatively quiet for long spells but when the flurry of goals came in the second half that saw it 1-2 it livened things up on the terraces and on the pitch. The United fans kept going but even they were stunned when Burnley hit what looked like being the late winner. Very impressive following from Burnley in terms of numbers and certainly the most they have brought to the Lane since a cup tie in the early nineties.