retired_smelesko

ack, forgot to refresh

retired_blondie_524

Tough luck Gricehead

Don't weaken now! You're inching closer :thup:

retired_eneko5613

Thanks Mark and mt for your kind commiserations

Post Mortem

Not surprisingly, the real Post Mortem began within a couple of days. It didn't take long for the fans to grasp hold of the real problem:
The debate went on for days, with more and more ridiculous reasons being bandied about as to why Abeyie didn't play. Many claimed to be from sources "close to the club", but one or two really were, and therefore the real reason was amongst those raised. Fortunately for the board and staff at the club, this was just one voice lost in the crowd. Eventually, the club felt compelled to make a statement.
Surely that would placate the fans? You think?
Not quite "putting the matter behind us", really. One letter writing campaign later, and Arsenal released their own press statement, which fell into the hands of those at Radio Sheffield:

That certainly put the cat amongst the pigeons. Shortly afterwards, Sheffield United were forced to admit that an administrative cockup had led to the wording of the contract being "for three months" rather than being "until the end of the season." This wasn't expected to be a problem, and wasn't revealed to the fans, but someone had forgotten to take into account that the playoff final was played on Sunday 20th May, not Saturday 19th May...

Would there be ramifications?

retired_eneko5613

Summer 2007

In amongst the general sniping and backstabbing surrounding the Abeyie incident, which was inflamed some more by the confirmation that the dutchman was the top scorer in the division with 31 goals, there were some notable headlines for the during the long football-free Summer months. Here are some, with a summary of the story:

Star Defender to become permanent? In which it was revealed that United had offered a contract to Steven Caldwell, although they weren't the only Championship club to do so.

Captain Morgan ship shape and Bristol fashion. which talked about a possible move away from the club for Chris Morgan to Bristol City. Morgan was eventually to move to Brighton for £50k.

Foreign Legion move in announced the signings of Brazilian midfielder Doriva from Crewe, and Spanish winger Juan José Camcho from Zaragoza. Doriva, 35, was on the manager's shortlist last season, and signs a short term contract. Camcho, 29, is set to impress at Championship level, having been signed as a Premiership player.

International Striker signs! rather misleading informed fans that Venezuelan international Massimo Margiotta (29) would join the club on a free transfer from Piacenza, once his current commitments with the national side were completed. He would miss a large part of pre-season.

Youth clearout at Lane confirmed the departures of Binnion and Robertson, but added that 6 others would leave, Colin Marrison to Cheltenham, Kyle MacFadzean to Halifax and Evan Horwood, Ryan Gyaki and Dean Oliver released.

Party for duo reported on the retirement party held for coach Ron Reid and scout Barry Wilson who had both retired after long service at the club.

Nalis hangs up boots...Sierra follows suit! announced the decision to retire taken by the two midfielders. The story originally ran with "at the end of the season", but this was corrected to read that Nalis would retire at the end of his contract, and Sierra would stay on until the end of the year.

Rams raid mackem gave the news that Caldwell had done what Michael Brown decided to do last season - sign for Derby instead of United. The journalist in this case postulated at some length that the Blades would be seriously short of defenders as a result.

West Midlands shopping spree for Jordan! eased fans fears of defensive nightmares, with news of two signings. 31 year old Oliver Tébily from Birmingham City, and 33 year old Tomasz Kos from Aston Villa. No shortage of experience there.

Then, eventually, it was time for preseason friendlies, and a chance to see how the new side would shape up against a variety of opposition of dubious quality.

retired_eneko5613

Pre-season 2007/2008

Goals a plenty in this seasons friendlies, and only once did United fail to keep a clean sheet. With Margiotta away on international duty, only Webber and Abbott of the regular first team were available to play up front. Of the supporting youth side, only transfer listed Mulligan was available, with the promising Lee San also away on international duty. It was like being thrown back two seasons, as Shipperley had to step in and Ifill had to lend his support on occasions. It didn't stop United putting two past Dundee United at Bramall Lane, through Abbott and Ifill, and then another four past Port Vale, through Camacho, Monty, Webber and an own goal.

But then the rumours started. Rumours that Webber wanted to leave and, not only that, but there had been a cash offer made for the striker. With no regular phone-in on Radio Sheffield until the season started, these rumours rumbled under surface, with no obvious place to manifest themselves. Soon Tonge's name was being mentioned as leaving for cash. Webber, at least, was missing from the next couple of games, with United putting four past Gravesend (Abbott, Ian Ross, Ifill and Shipperley) before struggling to a 0-0 draw against Sutton United. Whether Webber's absence was as a result of his outburst and possibly impending transfer was cause for more speculation.

Massimo Margiotta returned from internation duty and, with minimal training, went straight into the side to play Blackpool in the next friendly. He scored twice, and Jags and Bopp added goals, but United were appalling in defence all game, and were lucky to only ship two on this occasion.

There was news of a loan signing ahead of the final friendly of the season, which would be a tricky tie against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground. Fans hopes were raised by mention of a Premiership striker signing for a full season, but subsequently dashed again when it turned out to be Neil Mellor, back from Newcastle, and not a certain Arsenal striker they had been hoping for. Mellor at least looked sharper than in the first games of his spell last season. He scored the opener, as the strikers had a field day against Forest. Abbott added a brace, and Margiotta finished the job off. The day after the game, Radio Sheffield scored a rare exclusive interview with Blades boss Colin Jordan.

retired_eneko5613

August 2007

With August comes renewed hope. A new sense of optimism. The chance to right wrongs, to make yourself the best. The chance to get a headstart on the rest. Not something that United were familiar with in recent years. The Blades started their campaign at Bramall Lane against the blue and white hoops of QPR. Jordan had almost a full squad to choose from, with only regular keeper Paddy Kenny and midfield dynamo David Thompson unavailable through injury. Two summer signings in the starting eleven, with the fans especially looking forward to seeing Massimo Margiotta make his debut for the club. The South American would be partnered by Pole Pawel Abott, whilst the midfield four of Ifill, Tonge, Quinn and Jagielka looked to continue their domination of last season. Tomasz Kos made his debut alongside captain Unsworth, with Gresko and Francis the two fullbacks. In goal, youngster Jamie Annerson stepped in to deputise again.

As so often happened to United fans, hopes and dreams were shattered just 26 minutes into the new season. The QPR opener was completely against the run of play, and the Blades looked set to rue their missed chances, as they stumbled through to half time without troubling the visitors. The manager made two changes at half time, and presumably stripped the barely dry paint off the dressing room wall whilst he was at it, because with Camacho and Mellor on for Tonge and Abbott, United looked a different side. Jags equalised on the hour mark from an excellent Paul Ifill corner, and a penalty ten minuted later was dispatched professionally as always by captain Unsworth. With fifteen minutes to go, Camacho makes an impact on the game by robbing a QPR defender and setting Margiotta free beyond the defence. With only the keeper to beat, on his debut, the Venezuelan opted to pass sideways to Mellor, and the big Newcastle man made sure of the three points. This side now clearly had the bit between their teeth though, and eight minutes from time Jags' cross put the defence in trouble, and Margiotta's presence forced an own goal. Camacho made it a handful with an excellently taken freekick in the last minute, and the fans could go home smiling.

First day success meant a lot to both fans and manager, with Phil Jagielka getting a deserved Man of the Match award, but there was a niggling doubt about that first half performance. What would the gaffer do for the midweek trip to Millwall?

He wouldn't field Ian Ross. The midfielder who had broken through to the first team in pre-season opted to accept an offer to head to Huddersfield until Christmas rather than stay and fight for his place. Instead, the gaffer would field an unchanged side, that's what he'd do. No point in shattering confidences this early in the campaign. Again United were chasing the game in the first half, as Unsworth had a bit of a mare. After picking up an early booking, the Blades skipper managed to turn the ball into his own net, as it rebounded into his path from the keeper's parry. It's almost halftime before the Blades equalise, and it's Margiotta with his first goal for United, albeit with a hefty deflection. Tongue was replaced by Camacho again, and on came Webber in the second half. Twenty minutes in Jags' long ball finds him free of the defence. 2-1, as the highly rated striker makes no mistake. Two became three five minutes later, as Camacho's shot is parried by the keeper and Margiotta poaches the rebound. The Blades were cruising, and brought on Thompson for Ifill, but Millwall weren't quite finished. Five minutes to go, and they claw a goal back, getting behind the United defence with disturbing ease. A nervous couple of minutes for the travelling Blades contingent, until Thompson's shot is defended into the path of Margiotta, and the Venezuelan poaches his hattrick. The Cockney's still managed to get another goal back to make the final scoreline 4-3.

A win is a win is a win, and an away win even more so, but this performance was worrying, especially defensively. Tonge's second successive poor show must be cause for concern, as must the knock taken by Camacho at the end of the game. However, the Man of the Match winning performance of Massimo Margiotta must finally have the Blades forgetting the loss of Quincy Owusu Abeyie.

There was much transfer rumour and activity at Bramall Lane in the four days before the next game. Much of it surrounded Danny Coles, who was known to be unhappy with sitting in the reserves after being promised first team action. MK Dons were rumoured to have approached the Blades with a player exchange deal, but unsurprisingly Jordan was said not to be impressed with any of their squad, never mind the player they offered. Coles chose that point to hand in a transfer request, which brought bids from a couple of League One outfits, but these were dismissed as derisory by United. Ironically, the only solid transfer activity involved another player, as Keith Gillespie finally admitted that he didn't have a future in Sheffield, and signed for Luton for a nominal fee.

Jordan dropped Tonge for visit of Watford, making the change this time before the fans could start baying for it. In came Keenan at left back, with Gresko moving into midfield. Massimo Margiotta continued where he left off in the previous game, putting United ahead in the 5th minute with the best of his goals so far. Quinn made it 2-0 by the time the game was 20 minutes old, set up again by Jagiela. Then it all started going wrong, with Tomasz Kos largely to blame. The big defender was helpless as a Watford attacker skinned him from a standing start to make it 2-1 just before the break, and it could have been 2-2 just after, but United stole the ball and started a quick breakaway. Margiotta got the ball out wide, got the cross in, Thompson shot, and Abbott was on hand to put away the rebound. United needed the cushion, as Kos had another mistake in him yet. Three minutes from time, his appalling back pass let Watford in to score a second, but they couldn't find the equaliser. Another close run win, making the QPR result look more like a fluke. Man of the match for Thompson, but a worry for the fans seeing top scorer Margiotta leave the field.

Not good news on the Margiotta front, as his thigh injury would take up to a month to heal properly. A chance for one of the other strikers to stake a regular starting place, and one which Lee San didn't miss, as he came out in public and stated that he thought the manager should give him a chance. Jordan's response was that the lad wasn't fit enough, having missed most of the pre-season on international duty. It was Mellor who got the nod for the Blackburn game, but it wasn't a match that would look good on any United player's c.v. It's a strong performance from the freshly relegated side, and despite any inside knowledge from Gresko and Thompson, there was very little that United can do. Craig Bellamy was the main difference between the sides, and his brace either side of the break did the damage. A second half freekick made it three with United chasing the game.

It was probably a good job this game came when it did, as otherwise it would have had the fans howling. As it was, it simply highlighted the struggle any side in the division had in taking a promotion spot off the previous seasons relegated teams. It was time to forget about it and move on, in this case to the League Cup first round at Darlington. It was also time for three more youth players to consider moving on. James Ashmore, another midfielder who had briefly figured in pre-season, headed to Shrewsbury for a pre-Christmas loan spell, whilst Stephen Quinn and Dominic Roma both came out on the wrong end of arguments about first team action, and found themselves transfer listed. The fact that Gresko wasn't transfer listed didn't seem to worry Portsmouth, who came enquiring about his asking price anyway. Every player has his price, but Portsmouth were not willing to meet the club's valuation, and the matter was dropped.

The League Cup match was another matter that perhaps should have been dropped, although discussion of it dominated the airwaves for a good few days afterwards. Jordan took the unusual, but understandable decision of completing rehashing the team, but it was still a side that should have been strong enough to see off a League 2 outfit. Credit to Darlington, who battled hard for the first hard, and didn't let their heads drop when they went behind in the second to a Mellor goal. Instead, they picked themselves up and equalise within four minutes. A shambolic performance from Tebily didn't help. They went on to score a complete fluke of a winner inside the last ten minutes, but it was a victory they certainly deserved. Out of the cup, the most worrying things for the management were the knocks to Keenan and Ifill that would see the injury list growing again already. The fans had bigger worries, such as showing up at work the next day...

The loss of Keenan was balanced by the return of Camacho, whilst Ifill recovered in time for the game and Webber returned in place of Mellor in attack. Plymouth should have been easy picking at home, but the game was a dull one, and the meagre support of 18800 got what their numbers deserved. United had most of the pressure, but came away with only a draw after failing to convert any chances. They also came away with another injury to worry about, Jags looking set to miss three weeks with a gammy elbow. Still, at least there was a clean sheet.

The defensive frailties returned at Hull, though, as the Tigers take advantage of the lack of pace at the back to get behind United twice. Monty was in the side in place of Jags, and Mellor got the nod ahead of Abbot on this occasion. Fortunately, two freekicks, for Ifill in the first half, and Camacho in the last minute of the second, scrape a point for the Blades, who ended the month in what must be considered a disappointing 6th place.

Massimo Margiotta is deservedly voted Player of the Month, and his return to the side will be vital. Kevan Hurst, meanwhile, heads off to Oxford for another loan spell. The young winger considers this a chance to obtain a permanent move.
<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Charlton | | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 4 | +10 | 16 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Stoke | | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 6 | +5 | 15 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Blackburn | | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 2 | +8 | 12 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Hull | | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 15 | 7 | +8 | 11 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Cardiff | | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 3 | +5 | 11 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Sheff Utd | | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 11 | +3 | 11 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Leicester | | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 6 | +4 | 10 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Portsmouth | | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 7 | +2 | 10 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Sheff Wed | | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 15 | 11 | +4 | 9 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Southampton | | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 6 | +1 | 9 | </pre>

retired_eneko5613

September 2007

The league took another break at the start of September, and whilst on that break, United's new Spanish winger managed to dislocate his jaw. How he did it was anyone's guess, but rumours of a bust up in a Sheffield nightclub were strongly denied by the club. Regardless, he would miss the whole month, another big loss for the club. So for the televised home game against Cardiff, Tongey would start on the left, whilst there would be at least a little good news as Margiotta was back in contention and was immediately back in the starting line-up, replacing Mellor. Ex Blade and fans favourite Steve Kabba put the cat amongst the Bramall Lane pigeons in the 5th minute with an early strike, but Margiotta got the Blades back on level terms almost immediately. The Bluebirds retake the lead midway through the half, with the United defence worryingly left high and dry yet again, and this time there's no comeback, and the Blades are consigned to their first home defeat of the season.

The long trip to Southampton was just around the corner, and Jordan rang the changes after that, more to appease the fans than anything else. Tongey had failed, yet again, and Jordan handed the start to Gresko. Ifill had also been poor, so Thompson got the start on the other wing. A more enforced change saw the return to the side of Paddy Kenny, earlier than anticipated, to replace Annerson who had suffered a finger injury and would be missing for a while. It's not pretty. Roberts and Ormerod rip the United defence apart twice in the first half, leading, presumably, to some tough words from the gaffer during the break. Webber gets one back in the second as the Blades noticeably stopped trying to play offside. Ormerod restored the cushion for the home side on the hour mark, but Webber got a second to make a game out of it with quarter of an hour remaining. It could have been level, when Margiotta had an effort that rolled right across the goal line a few minutes later, and it probably should have been level as Southampton finished the game with just ten men. But it wasn't, it was a second consecutive defeat, dropping United to 11th. At least the fans had a South Yorkshire derby against Barnsley to look forward to. Surely an easy win against the Championship newcomers?

Jordan made three changes again for the Barnsley game. Tébily, Tonge and Jags came back for Keenan, Kos and Monty as the gaffer tried to find a settled side that would bring success. Although it wouldn't come for United this time, the game would go down in history as a classic, and was captured by the cameras for all to see. It was a story of three individual performances, two of outstanding brilliance, one of utter mediocrity. Brilliance the first: Graeme Kavanagh, whose hattrick put Barnsley 2-0 up and then vitally equalised for 4-4 in the last minute. Brilliance the second: Pawel Abbott, who came on at the hour mark and turned the game from 3-1 down to 4-3 up for the Blades with a world class hattrick. Quinn got the other goal, but the mediocrity was also on United's side, and it came from Paddy Kenny. He came and missed a cross for Barnsley's first goal, and palmed the ball out to their forward for the third. Then, when the rest of the team fought hard to turn the game around, he was beaten at his near post for the equaliser. Disappointing, and the fans thought so as well.

Fortunately there was plenty of news in and around Bramall Lane to keep fans' minds off results. There was speculation that Forte would be on his way out of the club after a public spat with the manager over first team football. There was the sight of Darlington beating Premiership Norwich in the second round of the league cup to make fans feel a little better. And there were some very peculiar goings-on regarding last season's top scorer Abeyie. Apparently he wasn't getting on too well with Mr Wenger and had been slapped on the loan list as a result. A couple of days later he apologised and the listing was withdrawn. Sources at the club reported that a tentative offer had been made, but had been rejected out of hand.

Meanwhile, Jordan was plotting Reading's downfall. Yet more changes were on the cards, with Sierra, Abbott and Keenan starting; Tébily, Tongue and Webber dropped. The travelling felt fleeced over the long journey to the Madjeski, as their team yet again didn't seem inclined to put the effort in. All in all, a drab game, punctuated by two goals for the home side, as United continued the slip down the table to 14th. How much longer could this go on?

Probably in frustration, Jordan threw the teamsheet out of the window ahead of the visit of 2nd placed Stoke to Bramall Lane. Blades fans turned up to the ground not knowing what to expect in terms of a performance, but certainly not expecting this team. Kos returned to a back four which saw Unsworth operating in his old left back position, Forte showed up on the left wing, whilst Margiotta made a long awaited return - in the centre of midfield! Abbott and Mellor started up front. Even more shocking than the selection was that United dominated early play. They even took the lead when Thompson's cross was poked home by Neil Mellor. They were giving away too many freekicks on the edge of the box, though, and an equaliser was bound to come from one of those. Showing that either there was still a chance for United, or that Stoke's early season form was unrepresentative, the two sides matched each other evenly for the rest of the game. A draw to give the lads some confidence ahead of September's main event: a visit to the pigsty.

Ex Owl Quinn would miss the trip to trotter-dom, after receiving a leg injury in training. Bopp would get (another) chance to hack it in the first team instead. Otherwise the side was unchanged, with the Washday fans confidently predicting a blue and white victory to lay the ghost of last season to rest and prolong United's slide. They were wrong. As usual. They did think they'd rescued a point, though; United took the lead when Abbott nicked the ball of the defender to start a move which he later finished at the near post from Francis' cross. It was the 82nd minute when McLean scored a virtually identical goal for the homeside, to the sound of thousands of trotters clapping together. They really thought they'd done it, but United picked up the pace and played some of their best football of the game, possibly even of the month. Bopp played it over the top to Ifill, who crossed deep to the back post. Forte laid the ball back across goal, and Mellor tapped home for 2-1. Two became three when Sierra's freekick was pushed out to the feet of Ifill who rifled home. The stands certainly emptied quickly, and quietly, after that. Except one.

So curiously, although they finished the month in 12th, the United fans were still happy. Football is a strange game.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Charlton | | 12 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 26 | 10 | +16 | 28 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Portsmouth | | 12 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 24 | 11 | +13 | 26 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Cardiff | | 12 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 17 | 6 | +11 | 25 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Hull | | 12 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 24 | 14 | +10 | 24 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Stoke | | 11 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 17 | 11 | +6 | 23 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Barnsley | | 12 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 20 | 18 | +2 | 20 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Southampton | | 12 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 16 | 14 | +2 | 20 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Blackburn | | 12 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 16 | 7 | +9 | 18 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Reading | | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 18 | 13 | +5 | 18 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Nottm Forest | | 12 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 15 | -1 | 17 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11th | | Leicester | | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 18 | 16 | +2 | 16 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 12th | | Sheff Utd | | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 25 | 24 | +1 | 16 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 13th | | Ipswich | | 12 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 20 | -6 | 16 | </pre>

retired_eneko5613

October 2007

Another quiet start to the month. What should have been a short international break turned into two weeks, as first one game was postponed, then another moved back a day. So it wasn't until the 17th that United finally played a game. On paper, this was a straightforward fixture, aat bottom side Luton who counted ex Blade Keith Gillespie amongst their number. A restructured Blades side (Kenny; Francis, Gresko, Unsworth, Jags; Thompson, Forte, Camacho, Quinn; Abbott, Margiotta) took the lead in the first half through Camacho's wonderful 25 yard freekick. They should have been cruising when Luton went down to ten men in the second period, but they never looked comfortable. It wasn't a surprise when Luton grabbed an equaliser in stoppage time. More of an annoyance, really. Jagielka awarded the Man of the Match award for a calm and collected defensive performance. He would repeat the feat in the next game.

Away at ninth placed Ipswich was a totally different proposition. A draw here would probably be a good result. And draw United did. With Webber in for Abbott, United almost conceded an early goal, but the linesman came to their rescue. Up at the other end, Margiotta refound his goalscoring form and put the Blades in front with 25 minutes on the clock. The Venezualean turned villain soon after, giving the ball away under pressure in a dangerous midfield position, which lead to a Bowditch equaliser. Again United played a large part of the second half against ten men, and should probably have found the winner.

The first home game of the month didn't arrive until the 27th - long enough to have the accountants jittery. Derby were the opposition, and they were struggling in 20th despite having two former Blades targets, Michael Brown and Stephen Caldwell, in their squad. Both started against an unchanged United eleven. United got off to a flyer when Margiotta's early shot was palmed into the path of Webber by the Derby keeper. The lead lasted all of two minutes, as United's leaky defence once again conceded an equaliser. They had the lead again before the break, though, when Mellor (on for an injured Webber) grabbed an unexpected goal. This time they hung on, and United were back to winning ways, although Webber would miss the next game with a dead leg.

Mellor came in for the crocked striker for the Burnley game - the on loan forward already having a much better time at the lane than in his previous spell. Paul Ifill also returned to the side, and the midfield all rolled over one place left until Forte fell out. This was another must win home game if the season was going to be put back on track. United started well, and Margiotta put them ahead early on. The Venezuelean was then brought down in a penalty area melée around the half hour mark, and Unsworth calmly slotted the penalty home. United held on to their 2-0 lead for the rest of the game, and aside from knocks to Camacho and Ifill, never looked worried. This was easily the most comfortable performance of the month, and stretched the unbeaten run out to an unlikely 6 games.

The Blades would have to do without the services of their new left winger for the first part of November, as the Spaniard was suffering from a bruised thigh.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Charlton | | 16 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 32 | 12 | +20 | 36 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Portsmouth | | 17 | 11 | 2 | 4 | 32 | 16 | +16 | 35 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Cardiff | | 17 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 25 | 15 | +10 | 32 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Barnsley | | 17 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 32 | 26 | +6 | 31 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Hull | | 16 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 33 | 20 | +13 | 30 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Southampton | | 16 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 25 | 20 | +5 | 28 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Stoke | | 17 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 30 | 27 | +3 | 28 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 8th | | Reading | | 17 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 25 | 16 | +9 | 26 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 9th | | Blackburn | | 17 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 21 | 12 | +9 | 24 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10th | | Sheff Utd | | 16 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 31 | 27 | +4 | 24 | | -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>