In their first game back in the Championship after finishing at the foot of the Premier League last season, Sheffield United will welcome Birmingham City to a packed Bramall Lane on Saturday evening.

Now under the management of Slavisa Jokanovic, the Blades come into the campaign as one of the favourites to win promotion back to the top flight, while their visitors will also come into the season with confidence under Lee Bowyer after he guided them to safety last year.

Match preview

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After Chris Wilder guided the club to two promotions in three years, Sheffield United enjoyed a stellar first campaign back in the Premier League in the 2019-20 season, eventually finishing in ninth spot.

However, the second season would not go to plan, with the Blades not picking up their first league win until January, occupying the foot of the table for the majority of the campaign as a result.

Wilder would go on to depart the club in March, and their fate was sealed not long after, despite interim manager Paul Heckingbottom guiding the South Yorkshire outfit to several commendable victories towards the back end of the campaign, with the Blades still finishing in 20th place, 16 points adrift of safety.

With the slate wiped clean, they head into this season at the beginning of a new era under the management of Slavisa Jokanovic, who has earned promotion out of the Championship on two separate occasions before, guiding both Watford and Fulham to the top flight.

He will hope to repeat that feat this season with a heavily-fancied Blades side, and they will take confidence from a recent 4-0 thrashing of Doncaster Rovers in pre-season, as Lys Mousset hit a brace alongside goals from Oliver Burke and Luke Freeman.

They will now welcome a full crowd to Bramall Lane for the first time since March 2020 with big expectations on their shoulders, as Jokanovic's men look to kickstart their season in a positive manner in their bid to make an instant return to the Premier League.

Birmingham City will make the trip north with the aim of stopping the Blades, as they look to pick up a victory of their own to start the season.

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Throughout the majority of last season, the Blues' place in the Championship looked in doubt, as they found themselves in a heated battle to avoid the drop due to a poor run under Aitor Karanka.

However, their fortunes were quickly changed when Lee Bowyer was appointed as the new manager in March, with the club sat in the bottom three.

He would start with an impressive 2-1 win over promotion-chasing Reading, and a tally of 17 points from his opening eight games would see them move clear of the likes of Rotherham United, Derby County and Sheffield Wednesday and confirm their safety.

The Midlands outfit would still finish comfortably in 18th spot despite the final two games ending in heavy defeats to Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City, as several key players were rested following a huge effort in the run-in as they won five of Bowyer's first eight games to climb away from the threat of relegation.

Now heading into his first full season as Blues boss, the former Birmingham midfielder will hope to lead his side to a much higher finish, with an opening victory against one of the promotion favourites potentially setting an impressive platform.

If they are to start with a victory, Birmingham will have to put their pre-season campaign in the past, as they head into the season on the back of a 3-2 defeat at the hands of fourth-tier Northampton Town and a 4-0 thrashing against West Bromwich Albion.

Team News

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Sheffield United will remain without centre-back Jack O'Connell, who continues to battle with a long-term injury that ruled him out of the majority of last season.

Jokanovic also confirmed that left-back Enda Stevens is yet to train with the side in pre-season, and attacking pair Billy Sharp and Oli McBurnie are both doubts after picking up injuries late last season.

While they are yet to make any additions, the fact that the Blades have managed to keep the likes of goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale and midfielder Sander Berge heading into the new season is a positive in itself for the South Yorkshire club.

Jokanovic has tampered with different systems in pre-season, and it is yet to be seen whether he will start the season with four at the back or continue with the Blades' established shape of three centre-backs.

Birmingham have been far more active in the transfer window than their opponents, bringing in the likes of midfielder Ryan Woods and forward Chuks Aneke on free transfers.

Bowyer has also used the loan market well to boost his squad, with the goalkeeper Matija Sarkic and defender Dion Sanderson arriving from Wolverhampton Wanderers and winger Tahith Chong signing on a one-year loan deal from Manchester United.

Sarkic should be called upon to start between the sticks as established stopper Neil Etheridge continues to recover from coronavirus.

Bowyer also confirmed that important midfielder Ivan Sunjic will not be ready for Saturday's clash, after missing a large portion of pre-season through injury.

Centre-back Harlee Dean and forward Lucas Jutkiewicz were both crucial for the Blues following Bowyer's appointment as they avoided the drop, and the manager should certainly continue to deploy two of his most trusted players at opposite ends of the pitch.

Sheffield United possible starting lineup:
Ramsdale; Basham, Egan, Robinson; Baldock, Norwood, Berge, Osborn; Mousset, McGoldrick, Burke

Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Sarkic; Colin, Roberts, Dean, Pedersen; Bela, Woods, Gardner, Chong; Leko, Jutkiewicz

We say: Sheffield United 1-0 Birmingham City

Birmingham looked rejuvenated under Bowyer at the end of last season, thriving with a solid back line, and they will certainly pose a tough test for the newly-relegated side.

On this occasion though, we see the Blades' quality-filled squad just getting over the line in what will be a tough clash against a Blues side who will come to Bramall Lane to frustrate them.

Written by
Sam Varley

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