This is what Sheffield United's win over Brighton and Hove Albion taught us about Chris Wilder's squad

After lolloping off the pitch, sharing a hug with Chris Wilder and then a fist-bump with another member of the visitors’ coaching staff, the centre-forward climbed a couple of steps towards the back of the dug-out and collapsed, barely able to move, in one of its huge padded seats.

It was a revealing end to what proved a match-winning shift at Brighton and Hove Albion. A lung-busting hour containing countless runs, numerous challenges and one clinical finish. Or, to put it another way, a display which reminded why his manager believes McBurnie and United are a perfect fit.

“It was a touch disappointing in terms of how we were with the ball,” Wilder, who is prone to pick apart United’s performances whenever they triumph, said. “We weren’t at our best in terms of possession or momentum, I didn’t think.

“People talk about the game, playing in between the lines and all this lovely other stuff. But there has to be something else to it as well, especially when you are a team like us.”

What that means, as Wilder has reminded on countless occasions, is a squad which has to work hard for every point it gets. And with 28 in the bag already, his players are clearly prepared to work ridiculously hard. And none more so than McBurnie who, despite making a steady but unspectacular start to his United career, has proven willing to muck in, chase lost causes and basically sacrifice himself for others.

His effort at the AMEX Stadium, which saw Wilder’s side end the contest within touching distance of fourth, was a reward for those long afternoons he spent clattering into defenders at places like Everton and Watford, who make the journey north on Boxing Day. United might have secured positive results against both. But McBurnie, despite putting his body on the line, received precious little recognition afterwards.

Signed from Swansea City during the close season, where he excelled under Wilder’s opposite number Graham Potter, the 23-year-old had another reason to feel vindicated by his performance in Sussex. Spearheading Albion’s attack was Neal Maupay, a player United had tried to recruit after waving goodbye to the Championship but who chose to swap Brentford for the south coast instead.

Having entered Saturday’s game searching for his fourth goal in five outings, the Frenchman would have been an excellent addition to Bramall Lane’s ranks. He had an effort disallowed for offside following McBurnie’s intervention.

But, a peripheral figure for much of the fixture, it was impossible to escape the conclusion that the latter is better-suited to United at this stage of their top-flight development.

“Oli is a talented boy. He scored a load of goals in a very technical side last year,” Wilder said. “It’s difficult when chances are at a premium, which they always are at this level. We could have done with the second one.”

Although that did not arrive - McBurnie’s replacement Lys Mousset and David McGoldrick both going close during the closing stages - United deserved to prevail over opponents coached by the man responsible for masterminding their last defeat on the road.

Potter later admitted as much himself and, perhaps inadvertently, provided a revealing insight into why, since McBurnie’s strike for City 11 months ago, they travel to Manchester City later this month hoping to equal a record. It was during the 1947/48 campaign, when Burnley prevailed 1-0 at Huddersfield, that a newly promoted club avoided losing any of its first 10 away outings at the highest level.

“Because they can attack quite direct, because they can go down the sides and also overload you,” Potter reflected, “It creates a feeling of stress.”

That comment, coupled with the tactics United employed to nullify the threat posed by Albion, confirm Wilder runs a much more sophisticated operation than the one described by sections of the media.

Well-organised and choreographed, they can make the complex look simple. And the build-up to McBurnie’s third goal of the campaign was simplicity itself; Dean Henderson launching the ball upfield before his colleague, after holding off one defender, then powered beyond Lewis Dunk.

It was further evidence that, even though many pundits would have you think it requires a PhD to understand the machinations of the modern game, sometimes football boils down to who wants it the most. And, refusing to take a tumble as he wrestled with Albion’s captain, that applied to McBurnie for five or so crucial seconds.

“We’ve got something under the shirt, if you know what I mean,” said Wilder. “Something that’s vitally important even when things aren’t going our way.”