Welcome, a very merry TFFmas from all of us here at the blog. As we head into the holiday season, there is plenty to look forward to both on the pitch and off it and we are looking forward to the month ahead. This December we will be running the 25 Days of TFFmas, every day up until the big day we will be publishing Christmas wishlists from members of our team for what they would like their club to get for Christmas.
On this fourth edition, we spoke to TFF’s Louis Hobbs on what he thinks Sheffield United need this Christmas.
The Club
Former Premier League team Sheffield United are currently in League One and, for several seasons, have been on the verge of promotion, only to bottle it come the end of the season. This season, however, they’re fighting harder than they ever have before. They’ve emerged as genuine title contenders and many fans, such as Louis, pray they don’t bottle it for the sixth year in a row.
In other competitions, the form isn’t being carried over. In the EFL Cup, they crashed out in the first round at home to Crewe Alexandria 2-1, a fixture they were probably favourites to win considering the league advantage they hold. In the EFL Trophy they finished third in their group, only picking up one win, a 4-2 away win at Grimsby and suffering two losses (2-1 at home to Walsall and 5-4 on penalties at home against Leicester City Under 23s). The FA Cup, however, is a different story, comfortably beating Leyton Orient 6-0 in the first round, although the draw wasn’t kind to them, giving them an away draw at fellow promotion candidates, Bolton Wanderers.
Wish 1 – Ethan Ebanks-Landell and Daniel Lafferty to be signed on permanent deals from Wolves and Burnley respectively
“Since the loss of Sheffield’s own Harry Maguire, the Blades have struggled to capture the signature of a centre-half capable of replacing him. However, Ethan Ebanks-Landell has secured our defence with powerful and consistent performances, not only with his brilliant defensive skills but scoring a few goals as well. In addition, Daniel Lafferty has been a perfect addition to the team, as he has superbly fitted into manager Chris Wilder’s tactics as an attacking wing back. Therefore, the whole team’s performances may severely suffer if we cannot gain the 2 players on permanent deals.”
Wish 2 – To sign a new attacking midfielder
“Although, Mark Duffy’s performances have been good this season so far, by bringing in a new player to play the number 10 role for Wilder’s men would really enhance the team. Bringing a player such as Marcus Maddison, Bradley Dack or Erhun Oztumer would raise the game of our current strikers as they have the capability of creating a lot more chances for the team.”
All three are great attacking midfielders and in terms of creativity, Maddison is the pick of the bunch. As of the 20th October this year, no one in the four divisions of English football has more assists than him, including the quote-on-quote ‘assist king’ Mesut Ozil. As A Peterborough United fan myself, I pray Maddison is going nowhere.
Most assists in top 4 divs from 15/16
20 – M Maddison
19 – M Ozil & N Adams
16 – C Eriksen & J Devitt
15 – D Payet, T McMahon & B Kee#pufc pic.twitter.com/ADEChPQybC— playmakerstats (@playmaker_EN) October 20, 2016
Wish 3 – To not bottle the league, come the end of the season
“For the past 5 seasons, Sheffield United have failed to secure promotion and most importantly have never won a play-off final in the history of the club. Therefore, as a supporter of the club it would be a miracle if our current form in the league could continue for the remainder of the season, and finally get promoted.”
Do you agree with this list?
Follow us on Twitter @OfficialTFF and while you’re at it, give Louis a follow @_LH9_. You can also find us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/thefootballforecast) and Instagram (thefootballforecast). Feel free to message us on any platform and let us know your thoughts!
Thank you to Louis Hobbs for contributing today, we’ll see you tomorrow for another member and another wishlist!
