Sheffield United must do something they've not done this season to boost play-off dream vs QPR
Sheffield United will be hoping to rekindle their play-off charge when they take on QPR at Loftus Road on Saturday afternoon.
Sheffield United will be hoping to bounce back from Wednesday night’s 2-1 defeat to Coventry City when they face QPR at Loftus Road this afternoon.
The Blades, who drew 0-0 with the Londoners at Bramall Lane back in November, were narrowly edged out by the Championship table-toppers, losing by the odd goal in three, after quick-fire goals from Haji Wright and Jack Rudoni sealed all three points for the visitors.
The defeat to Frank Lampard’s side has left United, heading into the weekend, nine points shy of the final play-off berth, meaning they are going to have to string a positive run of results together to stand any chance of breaking into the coveted top six places.
Ahead of the tussle with Julien Stéphan’s side, here are five pre-match talking points:
Competition for places
With just four players ruled out for the clash with the Rs, manager Chris Wilder has plenty of options to choose from. Joe Rothwell is back available following his three-match suspension and Jaïro Riedewald could be considered for a starting berth after returning from a hamstring lay-off via the bench against Coventry.
Wilder, speaking at his pre-match press conference on Friday morning, described his squad’s current condition as “strong”, admitting he has players who are knocking on his door in pursuit of a starting berth.
January recruit Ki-Jana Hoever, for example, has made just one Championship start for the Blades since arriving on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers, meaning he will keen to try and force his way in at right-back.
In other areas, the likes of Mark McGuiness, Oliver Arblaster, Tom Cannon and Tyrese Campbell will be pushing for starting berths.
Wilder’s demand
Nine points shy of the play-offs with 36 points still to play for means a top six finish is by no means impossible for the Blades. However, the amount of traffic currently separating them and sixth-placed Wrexham makes the job all the more challenging.
United head into the weekend 16th in the standings, highlighting the scale of the challenge they face to gatecrash the play-off places. But having demonstrated previously they have what it takes to string a run of positive results together, Wilder is refusing to let his team’s season fizzle out.
Speaking yesterday, Wilder said: "We need another big performance. We just need to make sure that, you know, now we get it, we're at business end of the season, we understand where we want to be. The players understand that.
"Understand we've got to put a run together. We did it last season. I think one of the key aspects that we looked at is that we can't concede two goals in a game.
"I think in two runs that we had last year, I think we had a run of 11 games and a run of eight or nine. Won eight, drew three, won seven out of nine. So, it can happen.”
Away improvements
Following a run of four defeats in five away games not all that long ago, United will be hoping to extend their unbeaten run on the road to three matches this afternoon. After earning a respectable point in a 1-1 draw with Millwall at The Den last month, the Blades secured their first away win of 2026 in their last away game, winning 1-0 at Portsmouth.
United’s away form has not been as strong as their form at Bramall Lane this term, reflected in their away points tally of 19 in comparison to the 26 points they have earned in S2, but their last two away days have offered signs of encouragement.
And following their dramatic victory over Portsmouth at Fratton Park a fortnight ago, the Blades will be hoping to build on that result by extending their unbeaten run away from home to three matches - a feat they are yet to achieve this season.
Wilder’s troops last went three away games without defeat when they produced a six-game winning run between January and March last year.
Inconsistent Rs
Few teams in the Championship have been as inconsistent as QPR have in recent weeks. After recording an impressive 3-1 win over Hull City at the MKM Stadium last Saturday lunchtime, they were brought back down to earth with a bump on Tuesday night, losing 5-0 away at Southampton.
It means the Loftus Road outfit, in their last six games, have alternated between a defeat, a win, a draw, a defeat, a win, and a defeat. With that in mind, it is very difficult to anticipate which sort of QPR is going to turn up this afternoon.
Despite their inconsistencies, the Hoops, who beat Coventry 2-1 at Loftus Road not all that long ago, are still in play-off contention, currently sitting two places and two points above the Blades. A win for the Londoners would move them onto 50 points and to within potentially four points of the final play-off berth.
However, they have won just one of their last ten meetings with the Blades, losing six.
Bamford’s Hoops hoodoo
After failing to build on his goal against Sheffield Wednesday against Coventry in midweek, striker Patrick Bamford will be hoping to get himself back on the scoresheet this afternoon.
The former Leeds United man has been excellent since joining the Blades in November, scoring nine goals in 18 matches in league and cup. Eight of his nine goals have been plundered in the Championship, meaning he is within touching distance of reaching double figures in this division for the fourth time in his career.
However, he has not faced a club more times than QPR in his career without scoring or registering an assist, firing blanks in each of his previous seven appearances against the London outfit. Both he and the Blades will be hoping that hoodoo comes to an end this afternoon.