Sheffield Utd vs Brighton predictions & Premier League tips
The Blades won for just the third time this season in the league at Kenilworth Road, although they remain in deep relegation trouble, seven points from safety and with a shocking goal difference of -38.
UK bookmakers make them 4/1 to get the better of Brighton and United have yet to beat a team that started the day in the top half of the table since returning to the Premier League.
The Seagulls' away record may be poor but they’ve played well enough in their last two games to suggest they can avoid an upset in South Yorkshire and our Sheffield United vs Brighton predictions have a leaning towards Roberto De Zerbi’s men.
Brighton bounce back at Bramall Lane
De Zerbi missed last weekend’s 2-1 loss at Tottenham following dental surgery and may have been glad of some pain relief after Spurs snatched all three points in stoppage time.
That result extended Brighton’s winless away run in the league to six games, although they have won on the road in the Europa League and FA Cup in the meantime.
The performance at Tottenham was decent and had their finishing been on point, they could have left north London with the win.
They had no issues finding the back of the net in their previous match, a 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace and have already shown they can cut apart the Blades on their own patch.
United boss Chris Wilder fielded a fairly strong team for that FA Cup tie and watched as they were torn to shreds. They won’t have to face hat-trick hero Joao Pedro this time as he's out injured, but Brighton have decent strength in depth going forward with Kaoru Mitoma, Ansu Fati and Simon Adingra back in the mix.
The Yorkshiremen did claim a battling 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture at the Amex Stadium, extending their unbeaten run against Brighton in the league to seven games, but that came during a difficult spell for De Zerbi’s side.
The Blades are far too leaky to trust against such a quality frontline with Wilder’s men having shipped 31 goals at home, allowing a remarkable 17.2 shots per game on their goal.
The win over Luton will give United a morale boost and was well deserved as they produced arguably their best performance of the season, although it didn’t move the Premier League odds much when it comes to their chances of staying up.
They allowed the Hatters to have 20 shots on goal and Wilder needs to be positive against Brighton with draws no longer good enough in the fight to stay up, potentially leaving his team vulnerable.
United were badly exposed in their last home game by Aston Villa, losing 5-0, and if the Seagulls want to be back in Europe next season, they need to be winning games like this.
Pairing an away win with over 2.5 goals is the choice given both sides should approach the fixture with a positive mindset, while games at Bramall Lane this season are averaging 3.6 goals per game.
Magic Mitoma may conjure up a goal
Mitoma made a welcome return to the Brighton starting line-up at Tottenham, his first appearance since before Christmas following injury and a trip to the Asian Cup.
The Japanese gave Spurs issues, although failed to end his long goal drought that stretches back to his brace against Bournemouth at the end of September.
It’s been a tricky season for Mitoma, who has struggled with injury, but he looked better at Tottenham and has continued to get into some good positions for Brighton, despite failing to score.
Mitoma has recorded five shots on target across his last seven appearances for Brighton and should get chances against Sheffield United to end his drought.
Looking at the goalscorer markets on betting apps, Mitoma’s price looks preferable to the likes of Evan Ferguson, who is also struggling for goals, and wayward finisher Danny Welbeck, who are both shorter odds
Card-happy Attwell give feisty fixture
There were six cards shown in the reverse fixture at the Amex Stadium, including a red card for Mahmoud Dahoud, and while the FA Cup tie was a bit tamer, it’s worth considering over 5.5 cards as a bet on gambling sites.
Referee Stuart Attwell has been given this game between two sides who rank in the top five for cards received this season with Brighton fifth on 61 and United second on 74.
Amongst referees to have taken charge of 10 or more Premier League games this season, only Anthony Taylor (5.22) averages more yellow cards per game than Attwell (5).
He’s given out at least five cards in seven of his last eight league assignments, including booking five Sheffield United players in their 1-0 win over Brentford in December.
In three games in charge of Brighton and United this season, Attwell has shown them a combined 14 yellow cards and there’s a chance this fixture is heavy on cautions too.
Sheffield United vs Brighton Tip 3: Over 5.5 cards – 26/25 with Unibet
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Chris is an experienced sports betting writer who has worked with most major bookmakers and national media outlets, such as Racing Post and ITN. He covers a wide range of sports with his favourites being NFL, rugby, football and Formula 1.
