Chelsea welcomes Sheffield United to Stamford Bridge ahead of the international break, here’s a statistical breakdown of the contest.
Chelsea follows up its resounding Premier League victory against 20th placed Burnley with an equally enviable fixture against 19th placed Sheffield United. There are a number of stats that give reason to believe this should be an equally comfortable game for the Blues. Here is the statistical breakdown of Chelsea’s upcoming bout with the Blades:
Sheffield United’s Bombarded defence
Last season, Sheffield impressed everyone with its rock solid defence. Only the top three sides in the division conceded less than Sheffield’s 39 goals in the 2019/20 season. This season has been a wholly different story, however. The Blades are the only team to not have kept a clean sheet so far. Not wanting to be unfair to Chris Wilder’s side, Sheffield has played Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City—losing by a one goal margin to each—in its first seven matches of the season. Considering the latter two of these teams rank first and second respectively in expected goals, they are fairly respectable results.
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However, Sheffield’s defence has been kept very busy. Goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale ranks second among goalkeepers for total saves with 28. Additionally, Chris Basham ranks in the top 5 for clearances with 30. With Chelsea boasting one of the most exciting attacks in the league, recently buoyed by the return of Hakim Ziyech and Christian Pulisic, expect another busy day for the Blades’ back line.
Rhian Brewster the saviour?
The Blades’ attack is equally as uninspiring as their defence. The South Yorkshire side has scored just three goals in the league in those seven matches. The only side equally as poor in front of goal is Chelsea’s victim from last week, Burnley. Sheffield’s 59 shots—second from bottom in shots taken—suggests there is little threat at all to the Blues’ goal. Quite simply, not enough is being created in the final third.
While the Blades’ defence last year was phenomenal, their attack was lacklustre, which is perhaps why their European dreams never came to fruition. They scored an equal number goals as to what they conceded (39), even relegated Bournemouth managed more. The Blades’ hope for attacking redemption this year comes in the form of record signing Rhian Brewster.
In 170 Premier League minutes, the 20-year-old has had just one shot, a far from inspiring start to life at Bramall Lane. However, there is reason to fear the young striker still. Last season, Brewster was instrumental in Swansea’s late playoff push after joining the Welsh team in January on loan. His 10 goals in 20 Championship appearances for the Jacks demonstrated his potential to perform under pressure. There is clearly a lot of potential in Brewster, and while he may not trouble Chelsea’s recently sturdy defence, be sure to keep an eye on him as the season goes on.
Frank Lampard vs. Chris Wilder
Lampard and Wilder have gone head-to-head four times in their managerial careers. Twice when Lampard was at Derby, and twice last season with Chelsea. Whilst at Derby, each manager claimed a home victory as Wilder’s Sheffield was promoted automatically and Lampard’s side fell at the final hurdle.
With Chelsea, Lampard has had less luck against the Blades icon. In an early season fixture, the sides shared the spoils, a 2-2 draw back in August 2019. The last time these two managers faced off was in July, and it was a clash Lampard would wish to forget as Sheffield came out 3-0 victors. However, the score line was perhaps unflattering to the Blues. Chelsea dominated possession (76.3 percent), had almost 600 more passes and tallied six more shots. With Lampard having dramatically improved his squad over the summer, expect him to get one over his managerial counterpart this weekend.
What’s the most interesting stat these two sides share in your eyes? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!