Aiming to break into the top six of the Championship table in the final game of the regular season, Blackburn Rovers head to Bramall Lane to take on Sheffield United on Saturday.
The hosts are guaranteed a third-placed finish and subsequent playoff tie against the sixth-placed team, while the visitors only trail that last top-six spot by a single point heading into the final day.
Match preview
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Sheffield United return to Bramall Lane on Saturday aiming to end the regular Championship season on a high with a second straight win ahead of the beginning of their playoff campaign next week.
The Blades spent almost the entirety of the 2024-25 campaign in a battle for the two automatic promotion spots and an immediate return to the Premier League, having overcome a two-point deduction to earn 89 points from their 45 outings, but they saw their top-two hopes eventually disappear following a slump in April.
After topping the table with seven games remaining, Chris Wilder's side went on to suffer four defeats in a five-match span, only prevailing over Cardiff City on Good Friday following three straight defeats, before an Easter Monday away loss to Burnley confirmed their hosts and Leeds United as the automatic promotion sides.
Then turning their focus to the playoffs, the Blades visited Stoke City last Friday and succeeded in making a return to winning ways, as Sam McCallum opened the scoring in the first half and Andre Brooks wrapped up a 2-0 victory three minutes from time.
While left disappointed having fallen short in the top-two race and been guaranteed a third-placed finish, Sheffield United will, at least, aim to build further momentum with a second straight win at the weekend before kicking off their playoff bid next Thursday.
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Their visitors, meanwhile, make the trip across to Yorkshire with much more to play for, as they go in search of a victory in the hopes of breaking into the playoffs.
When Valerien Ismael replaced John Eustace as Blackburn Rovers manager in late February, they sat sixth with 12 league games remaining, but the Lancashire outfit looked to have dropped out of the playoff race entirely as the new boss' first seven outings produced just two points, with five consecutive defeats coming across March and April.
They have since reignited their top-six hopes with a fine run, though, having won each of their last four outings since ending that losing run with a goalless draw against Sheffield Wednesday, going on to record their first wins under Ismael against Luton Town and Millwall last month.
A 1-0 triumph away at fourth-placed Sunderland then completed an Easter Weekend six-point haul for the Rovers, before they most recently hosted Watford last weekend and made it four wins on the bounce in a comeback 2-1 victory, as Todd Cantwell levelled the scores on the hour mark and Tyrhys Dolan scored the decisive goal 16 minutes from time.
Now sitting eighth, just one points behind seventh-placed Millwall and sixth-placed Coventry City and two behind fifth-placed Bristol City with one game left to play, Blackburn Rovers head to Bramall Lane in desperate need for another win while hoping other final-day results in the top-six race go their way to stand a chance of cracking the playoffs.
Team News
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Sheffield United will remain without defenders Harry Clarke and Rhys Norrington-Davies and midfielders Oliver Arblaster and Tom Davies on Saturday due to ongoing injury issues, while Chris Wilder may opt to rotate his starting XI ahead of their playoff semi-final first leg on Thursday.
Anel Ahmedhodzic may return to the defence from the outset to join Rob Holding, after the latter partnered Jack Robinson against Stoke City, while Sam McCallum may keep his place on the left-hand side of the back four thanks to his goal last time out despite competition from Harrison Burrows.
Key midfielder Vinicius Souza may be afforded a rest with Sydie Peck partnering Hamza Choudhury, while Tom Cannon, Gustavo Hamer, Andre Brooks and Ben Brereton Diaz will compete for attacking spots after Callum O'Hare and Rhian Brewster supported Tyrese Campbell and Kieffer Moore against Stoke.
Blackburn Rovers should be unchanged from their latest win over Watford last weekend, with Owen Beck, Hayden Carter, Harry Leonard, Scott Wharton and Andreas Weimann remaining confined to the treatment room.
Yuki Ohashi will continue to lead the line in a 4-2-3-1 setup, while Todd Cantwell and Tyrhys Dolan are key men in support with the latter having scored in each of their last two wins to move onto seven goals alongside six assists in the Championship this season.
Elsewhere, Sondre Tronstad will again join mainstay Lewis Travis in the engine room, while Danny Batth and Dominic Hyam continue to partner up at the heart of a back four, with Balazs Toth having been preferred over Aynsley Pears between the sticks in recent weeks.
Sheffield United possible starting lineup:
Cooper; Seriki, Holding, Ahmedhodzic, McCallum; Peck, Choudhury; Brooks, Brewster; Cannon, Moore
Blackburn Rovers possible starting lineup:
Toth; Brittain, Hyam, Batth, Ribeiro; Travis, Tronstad; Dolan, Cantwell, Hedges; Ohashi
We say: Sheffield United 1-1 Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers head to Bramall Lane with plenty to fight for and momentum on their side, but they face a particularly tough final-day test and may only be able to come away with a point against a strong Sheffield United side.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
