Sheffield United 1-1 Bristol City: Robins Claim Late Point in Poor Blades Showing | OneFootball

Sheffield United were unable to see off the late storm of play-off hopefuls Bristol City to draw 1-1 under the lights at Bramall Lane.

The Blades were very much second best all night but managed to work a wonderful goal with Rhian Brewster’s assist to Tyrese Campbell in the 61st minute. But the least the Robins deserved from this game was a point, and when Mark Sykes latched onto George Earthy’s through ball inside the box and tucked it into the far corner in the 90th minute, nobody could have any complaints.

Chris Wilder handed Rob Holding his first start, whilst Femi Seriki and Jesurun Rak-Sakyi were also recalled to the starting eleven. Anel Ahmedhodzic dropped to the bench with Gustavo Hamer, whilst Vinicius Souza missed out completely.

Lineups

Blades: Cooper, Holding (Ahmedhodzic 76), O’Hare (Brewster 54), Rak-Sakyi (Hamer 54), Burrows, Robinson, Brereton Diaz, Campbell (Moore 66), Choudhury, Seriki (McCallum 76), Peck.

Unused: A. Davies, Baptiste, Brooks, Oné.

Bristol City: O’Leary, Bird (Sykes 45), Hirakawa (Earthy 62), Williams, Twine (Mehmeti 62), Knight, Vyner, Dickie, Tanner, Roberts (Pring 79), Armstrong (Wells 62).

Unused: Bajic, Bell, Cornick, McGuane.

First Half

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – MARCH 11: Tyrese Campbell of Sheffield United scores his team’s first goal during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield United FC and Bristol City FC at Bramall Lane on March 11, 2025 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Sheffield United started on the front foot, forcing an early corner before a mistake from Knight gifted Rak-Sakyi a chance to test O’Leary from a tight angle. Despite the visitors dominating possession in the early stages, it was the Blades who looked the more threatening, with Callum O’Hare and Rak-Sakyi both going close inside the opening eight minutes.

Bristol City, having lost just once in their last nine league outings, controlled large portions of possession. However, United remained dangerous in attack, with Burrows’ vicious low-driven shot denied by a sharp save from O’Leary as they continued to probe for an opener.

The best chance of the first half fell to Rak-Sakyi, but under pressure from George Tanner’s last-ditch challenge, his touch let him down just three yards from goal.

At the other end, City should have taken the lead, only for United’s goalkeeper, Michael Cooper, to produce a stunning save. When Tanner’s cross found Armstrong unmarked at the back post, a goal seemed inevitable, but Cooper clawed the header off the line in dramatic fashion.

O’Leary remained busy in the City goal, denying Campbell before the break as United continued to press.

Second Half

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – MARCH 11: Mark Sykes of Bristol City celebrates scoring his team’s first goal in front of the team’s fans during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield United FC and Bristol City FC at Bramall Lane on March 11, 2025 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Both sides started the second half with intent, creating early chances. Tyrese Campbell went close for United, flashing a low effort narrowly wide just after the restart.

But the visitors responded with two promising opportunities. Firstly, substitute Sykes saw his header go just over, while Scott Twine’s curling effort had Cooper scrambling.

The breakthrough finally arrived in the 61st minute, courtesy of a moment of quality from the in-form striker Tyrese Campbell. The Blades striker latched onto a superb pass from Rhian Brewster, spun away from his marker, and coolly slotted the ball into Max O’Leary’s bottom-right corner. It was perhaps an undeserved lead for United, but the fans did not care as it sent them top of the league by three points.

Wilder made changes to shore up his side, introducing Kieffer Moore for the goalscorer Campbell, who limped off, before bringing on Anel Ahmedhodzic and Sam McCallum as the Blades looked to hold onto their lead. However, Bristol City refused to back down and pushed forward in search of an equaliser.

City’s pressure intensified in the closing stages, with substitute Nahki Wells and Joe Williams both seeing their efforts deflected behind for corners. The visitors were relentless, and their persistence finally paid off in the final minute of normal time.

With 90 minutes on the clock, Bristol City produced a moment of brilliance to level the score. A well-worked move saw Mark Sykes in the right place at the right time, and he made no mistake, lashing a powerful shot past Cooper to send the traveling fans into raptures.

As the Robins celebrated, six minutes of stoppage time were signalled, setting up a tense finale. United immediately appealed for a penalty when Pring appeared to pull down Burrows in the box, but referee Stephen Martin waved play on, much to the frustration of the home crowd.

Tensions boiled over moments later when Blades captain Jack Robinson clashed with Rob Dickie, leading to a mass confrontation between both sets of players. The situation resulted in yellow cards for Robinson, Dickie, and George Tanner as emotions ran high in the dying moments.

The Blades, although top of the league as of Tuesday night, will be kicking themselves because Burnley only managed a draw at home to West Bromwich Albion. Meanwhile Leeds United have the chance to reclaim top spot with a draw at home to Millwall on Wednesday evening.