After the night before, where a comfortable 2-0 victory over Ipswich Town all but mathematically confirmed the Blades’ automatic promotion, the result at Elland Road today put it beyond doubt.
Sheffield United are back in the Premier League. What a time it’s been since the appointment of Chris Wilder, it’s been a bumper few years for the licensed establishments with most of his time at the Lane being celebratory. The club has without a doubt come a long way since its last brief stint in the Premier League and subsequent relegation to League One only a few years later. Under the guidance of Wilder and backing from the board, fans will be optimistic that our return to the top tier of English football will not be a short lived experience, as the club look to establish itself as a solid Premier League outfit.
Blades fans will be counting down the days until the fixtures are released, which for clarity is Thursday 13 June 2019 at 09:00.
There’s certainly a lot to look forward to in what will be our first season back in the top flight since 2007.
A trip to Tottenham’s brand new stadium will surely be one of the highlights for those who travel away, looking to add a new venue to the list of grounds they have visited.
Encounters against the cream of the crop of English football will no doubt be challenging, but this is what supporters of every club long for, especially those following a team which has been absent from the top flight for so long.
That being said, clubs such as Chelsea, Arsenal and certainly Manchester United are not the quite the dominant force that they were during our last stint in the Premier League back in 2006/07.
Reigning champions Manchester City, who finished 14th that season, along with Liverpool are now the two teams which are feared most by the rest of the league.
It will be interesting to see how we stand up against the current English and European Champions respectively.
Other changes to look forward to include VAR and the introduction of a winter break.
2018/19 will be the first season in which VAR is introduced to the Premier League and although it has its critics, the move is for the most part welcomed by those involved.
The introduction of a winter break brings the Premier League in line with many of the other top leagues in Europe and the rest of the world. According to the FA, the move is likely to help the England national team improve in future World Cup and European Championship tournaments, although many fans are not happy with a reduction in the amount of football being played over the festive period.
We now have pre-season to look forward to and the opportunity to strengthen the squad before the end of the transfer window. Incidentally, the deadline for Premier League clubs to bring new players in is 17.00 on the 8th August – although certain loan deals and free transfers can be arranged beyond that point.
The Blades are going up!