Sheffield United: The Blades draw but show Manchester United how it’s done

For all but seven minutes of this contest, when the three goals from the visitors turned the match on its head, Sheffield United were so superior, so in control and dominant, it would have been easy to mistake them for three-time European champions rather than a team which should, by rights, still be feeling its way into the Premier League.

Although the final outcome will be a source of frustration - they had, after all, been cruising until Brandon Williams' effort threatened to turn the contest on its head - United once again demonstrated their position in the upper eschelons of the table is no accident. Even Solskjær, who revealed he feared the worst when goals from John Fleck and Lys Mousset saw them deservedly establish a 2-0 lead, could not fail to have been impressed by the talent and the tenacity at Chris Wilder's disposal. Nor will it have been lost upon the Norwegian or Old Trafford's hierarchy that a side which out-performed, out-fought and for the most part out-thought their own was assembled for less than it cost them to acquire Harry Maguire - the former United centre-half - during the close season.

The progress the hosts have made since appointing Wilder three years ago is nothing short of remarkable. It is also, given that four of those who started are veterans of the squad he led out of the third tier at the first time of asking, a triumph of strategic recruitment, effective coaching and joined-up thinking. Three things which, although Wilder was too polite to admit it afterwards, Solskjær's employers have lacked following Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement in 2013.

"We've got lads who are making their way in this division," Wilder said afterwards. "Most of our signings have come out of the Championship because that is the market we are in. We don't have the budget, and that's not a complaint, of the clubs at the top of the division. We don't have the budget of those in the middle of it either. Or many of those at the bottom."

What United do have, however, is lashings of character; something they demonstrated when, after inexplicably falling behind following quick-fire strikes Brandon Williams,Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford, Oli McBurnie equalised during the closing stages. The former Swansea City centre-forward has endured a frustrating few months in South Yorkshire, showing plenty of effort for very little reward. But his finish, which was subject to a VAR review following a suspected handball, could be a turning point in the Scotland international's campaign.

It would be a mistake, though, to say United troubled their namesakes from the North-West with perseverance alone. They didn't. They were slicker, better and brighter in every single department until Williams' intervention sparked a mad cap period.

Despite missing John Egan through injury and Dean Henderson, who was ineligible for selection against his parent club, United grabbed the fixture by the scruff of the neck as, working in unison with their supporters, they heaped suffocating pressure on the opposition. It was only relieved when Mousset, who gave the hapless Phil Jones such a torrid time he was withdrawn during the interval, departed with a tight hamstring. No longer wary of the Frenchman's pace, Solskjær's men were encouraged to press forward when Williams pounced. Then Greenwood and Rashford.

A huge tackle from Oliver Norwood on Jones had earlier set the tone; demonstrating United would not be intimated by price tags or reputations. As Solskjær's charges tip-toed through the game, seemingly fearful of being tackled, Mousset squared for John Lundstram after leaving Jones floundering and, when his shot was saved, Fleck did the rest. David McGoldrick would surely have doubled their advantage had he connected with the Scot's set-piece soon after while David de Gea, having earlier denied Lundstram, denied the Republic of Ireland international midway through the first-half. It was 29 minutes until Simon Moore, deputising for Henderson, had a save to make.

Mousset's fourth of the campaign was also expertly crafted; with the Frenchman wrestling possession before laying the ball off to Fleck whose perfectly flighted pass sent him darting through. On this occasion, de Gea was powerless to intervene as Mousset found the bottom corner of the net.

What happened next presented United with a huge psychological test as Greenwood and Rashford pounced after Williams had reduced the deficit. It was one they passed with flying colours when McBurnie netted for the second time this term. But make no mistake, although Wilder rightly paid tribute to their resolve, the Leeds-born marksman's effort was a reward for the skill they had shown.

"I think everyone knows what our attitude is," the United manager said. "No matter who we are up against, we'll always go for it."