Energy

[blademark]

You've never played the game have you. The Blades are having a great season, but, and I understand that 21st century armchair managers feel the need to apportion blame for some reason, but few teams, if any, could have lived with that tonight.

Sometimes you just have to sit back and admire the opposition.

That's a bit harsh I think. Wilder said more or less the same in his interview. We weren't at it in any way tonight.

 

[Greasy Chap Butty]

It was like Rorke's Drift for long spells, the energy thay took was phenomenal. We got zero time on the ball, tiniest errors punished to the max.
We could have been 'more us' , but 2-0 against World Champions is just get up, move on and thump WH.

 

[frechyblade]

We’ve pulled up opposition supporters and managers when they’ve had off days against us for not recognising we did a job on them. Tonight the best club side in the world did a job on us they passed us of the park and nullified our wide overloads. They made us ‘have an off day’ no shame in that they’ve done it to better sides than us. Keep the faith blades.
UTB

 

[A Storm of Blades]

You've never played the game have you. The Blades are having a great season, but, and I understand that 21st century armchair managers feel the need to apportion blame for some reason, but few teams, if any, could have lived with that tonight.

Sometimes you just have to sit back and admire the opposition.

Am I personally attacking you? Us having a great season (which we are) has absolutely nothing to do with anything. I said Liverpool were unreal, but our work rate was poor, we gave them far too much room and respect from 10 minutes in. And I’d hazard to guess we’d played half a dozen more games this time last season. BTW if I’d had not managed to resist the urge to tell you to fuck off, you’d have deserve it

 

[Top Cat]

"Our work rate was poor, we gave them far too much room and respect"

And that had nothing to do with the quality of the opposition? The Blades gave them far too much room and respect. That was by choice?

 

[A Storm of Blades]

"Our work rate was poor, we gave them far too much room and respect"

And that had nothing to do with the quality of the opposition? The Blades gave them far too much room and respect. That was by choice?

Wilder and JOC have said the same. Contrast that with the Man City performance. Same score line, similar possession stats, but a drastically different (better) performance. Largely because we pressed, chased, and hurried City. We did none of that tonight.

 

[Charlieblade]

Wilder and JOC have said the same. Contrast that with the Man City performance. Same score line, similar possession stats, but a drastically different (better) performance. Largely because we pressed, chased, and hurried City. We did none of that tonight.

Liverpool are world and European champions, and probably PL winners this season. They are clearly better than Man City this season too.
Sheffield United are greater than the sum of their parts, but we were humbled by a much better side tonight.
There will be a forensic examination of the reasons for this defeat, because that's the way Wilder works. The team and the manager will respond to this result, but at the end of the day, we lack the depth and skill levels of Liverpool, who did not allow us to play to our strengths.
This was much more tan just a bad day at the office for us.
Move on.

 

[Toronto Blade]

Small squad only change was getting Lundstram back in.
Played at the Etihad and Anfield in 4 days lads worn out.
As for McBurnie's chance at the end it is so difficult to get any type of accuracy when you are sliding in for a shot .
It is just a hopeful attempt who knows where the ball might go.

 

[Roygbiv]

We did look tired but we've just played Man City and Liverpool within 5 days following on from playing one of the most in form sides in the Premier League.

I personally don't think it's anything to worry about in the long run. 3 ridiculously hard games in a week. Every manager has criticised the schedule and how knackered their squads are. Most of these squads are far bigger than ours and haven't had anything like the 3 tough games we have had.

 

[Greasy Chap Butty]

Wilder and JOC have said the same. Contrast that with the Man City performance. Same score line, similar possession stats, but a drastically different (better) performance. Largely because we pressed, chased, and hurried City. We did none of that tonight.

Because Liverpool did exactly that same thing on us. Unfortunately we we were out Uniteded by the best team in the world.
Just like someody else above said - we had an 'off day' because of how Liverpool played, with their billion pound budget.
Learn what we can from it, aim for perfection as CW and JOC want, move on.

 

[LS16Blade]

We did look tired but we've just played Man City and Liverpool within 5 days following on from playing one of the most in form sides in the Premier League.

I personally don't think it's anything to worry about in the long run. 3 ridiculously hard games in a week. Every manager has criticised the schedule and how knackered their squads are. Most of these squads are far bigger than ours and haven't had anything like the 3 tough games we have had.

Totally agree with this.

This period of 3 matches in a short period of time has been criticised by most of the managers but Wolves and ourselves (and to a slightly lesser extent, Leicester) were dealt an especially rough hand.

People will say that 'everyone has to play everyone else', but to have to play far and away the 2 best teams in the country in successive games and also at the most congested point of the fixture list with barely any recovery time between the matches, is particularly tough.

Unsurprisingly, therefore, we saw the much-vaunted Leicester caned at Man City (we put up a much better fight at the Etihad than they did) and then surrender abjectly at home to Liverpool 4-0 without mustering a shot on goal. Obviously, they then made 9 changes to their side - as you can when you have the resources they have accumulated over a number of years in the Premier League - and were able to beat West Ham.

Wolves, meanwhile, put a huge effort into beating Man City at home but then had to try to do it all over again at Liverpool and not only failed but also then looked poor and jaded at Watford in a game that they wouldn't be expected to lose.

Of course, our schedule was the toughest of the lot with both games being away, and we have far and away the barest resources. Watching last night, that just didn't look like us. It was a match too far; we were running on empty. It is no coincidence that the best 3 outfield players on the night were the substitutes.

Funnily enough, before we played at City, I saw a City fan on social media ranting about the fact that the fixture list had been skewed to help Liverpool. His reasoning being that Liverpool would get to play each of Leicester, Wolves and United after all 3 had already been given a workout by City. On reflection, he might have had a bit of a point.

 

[Kanye]

Oh ok then

I know you're trying not to engage with the poster, and I can see why.

Just fyi though, he's being disingenuous (or he completely misunderstood the point Wilder was trying to make), as his comments about them winning first and second balls was clearly a compliment to Liverpool rather than a criticism of our own performance.

 

[CarlMcBlade]

A couple of back to back 2-0 defeats. But they were worlds apart with regards to performance. I was proud of the lads following the defeat to Man City. But last night we simply didn’t turn up. Yes you can reel off the blurb about Champs of the World, Europe, etc etc. But we did exactly what Chrissie says we don’t do......Roll over for the opposition.

 

[SittingontheBall]

A couple of back to back 2-0 defeats. But they were worlds apart with regards to performance. I was proud of the lads following the defeat to Man City. But last night we simply didn’t turn up. Yes you can reel off the blurb about Champs of the World, Europe, etc etc. But we did exactly what Chrissie says we don’t do......Roll over for the opposition.

No we didn’t.
If we had Chris would have said so.
He wouldn’t need you to say it for him.

 

[CarlMcBlade]

Yes they are the best team in England by a country mile. They are fantastic with the ball and more surprising they are even better without it. But our very brief moments with the ball were squandered and given up so easily. We were definitely caught in the Anfield “headlights” and that is so un-Sheffield United.

 

[Rodley]

That's a bit harsh I think. Wilder said more or less the same in his interview. We weren't at it in any way tonight.

He has to say that, standards can’t drop.

He also said the fans need to be “at it” on Friday against West Ham. We can’t rock up like we didn’t against Watford and sit on our hands, got to turn up the volume from minute one.

Need a couple of players in too.

 

[SittingontheBall]

Yes they are the best team in England by a country mile. They are fantastic with the ball and more surprising they are even better without it. But our very brief moments with the ball were squandered and given up so easily. We were definitely caught in the Anfield “headlights” and that is so un-Sheffield United.

That’s more like it.
Didn’t roll over, at least not by my definition of roll over (what Saints did during their thrashing by Leicester).