Sky’s Soccer AM landed the Blades with a couple of firsts to partake in this Tuesday with United travelling to Burton Albion for their first experience of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy.

The match also marked a first competitive visit to the Pirelli stadium, albeit a familiar sight to the Blades who travelled to last years preseason friendly at the tidy home of the Brewers.

With the competition insisting on a full strength policy, Danny Wilson made five changes from the team that faced Yeovil days earlier. George Long, Jordan Slew, Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, David McAllister and Danny Philliskirk all started, whilst Steve Simonsen, Lescinel Jean-Francois, Nick Montgomery, Stephen Quinn and Richard Cresswell made way. In the absence of stand in club captains Montgomery and Cresswell, Michael Doyle was the man chosen to take the captain’s armband.

Wilson also took the opportunity to try a differing system, starting the game in a 3-4-3 formation with Matt Lowton (left) and Harry Maguire (right) flanking Neil Collins. A midfield of Mendez-Laing, McAllister, Doyle,and Flynn supported Slew, Porter and Philliskirk in attack.

The first half in which the Blades struggled to make a huge impact on the game and in fairness to the home side, they should have been leading as the half time whistle blew.

It became clear early in the half that Burton were a team with pace and guile and with the experimental United side leaving gaps in the final third, the home side often saw their speedy breaks create chances.

Maghoma, Phillips and McGrath in particular looked the danger men, all guilty of not converting chances in a mixture of near misses and good saves from young Blades keeper George Long.

Despite the regular Burton pressure, the Blades themselves weren’t without chances. A Collins header flew over the bar from a Ryan Flynn cross and Mendez-Laing beat his man and put in an inch perfect cross for Danny Philliskirk who headed the ball down only for it to bounce over the crossbar when it looked more likely to find the net.

The sides went in at half time level, with Danny Wilson knowing that the Blades had to step up their game in order to progress to the next round of the knockout competition.

The managers answer was to revert to a more familiar system, with Danny Philliskirk replaced by Elian Parrino, who made his first appearance since re-signing at the Lane. The Blades went to 4-4-2 with Matt Lowton taking up the less familiar left-back slot.

The visitors looked more solid as a result, but is was to be Burton who broke the deadlock around 70 minutes in. A long clearance down the centre of the pitch was flicked on by Yussuf finding Richards, who took a touch and curled the ball into the top corner. It was no more than Burton Albion deserved, with Paul Peschisolio’s side having looked the more convincing in the fixture.

Danny Wilson made another change, bringing on Norwegian Erik Tønne for the ineffective Mendez-Laing.

Shortly after the Blades were level when centre-back Harry Maguire spotted McAllister‘s call and subsequent run, lifting a great ball into the area for the midfielder to cooly chest down and place into the bottom corner under pressure from two Burton defenders.

This sparked the Blades into action and suddenly the visitors were attacking with a renewed purpose and sense of urgency, with the home side struggling to cope with the temporary onslaught, McAllister came close to putting the Blades in front with a deflected shot which looped onto the top of the crossbar.

With 10 minutes remaining, substitute Tønne cut inside and from 25-yards unleashed a quick low strike which evaded the Brewers keeper Atkins’ dive and nestled into the far corner.

Despite another Maghoma chance, the Blades looked most likely to add to the tally, arguably the best chance falling to Jordan Slew who was played in behind the home sides defence. The young striker got his angles wrong and took the ball further wide rather than bearing down on goal and as a result his effort ended up wide of the far post.

Matty Harriott was given a couple of minutes in place of Porter, with Tønne pushing further forward as the Blades saw out the final stages of the game to ensure their place in the draw for the next round.

The draw will take place on the morning of the 3rd September, live on Soccer AM.

Burton Albion 1 – 2 Sheffield United

Burton Albion: Atkins, McGrath, Moore, Corbett, Richards, Zola (Yussuf 67), Austin, Phillips, Maghoma, Blanchett, Dyer.
Unused: Poole, Webster, James, Palmer.

Sheffield United: Long, Lowton, Mendez-Laing (Tonne 74), Doyle, Flynn, Slew, Collins, Maguire, McAllister, Porter (Harriott 88), Philliskirk (Parrino 45).
Unused: Simonsen, Conneely.

Attendance: 2725

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