The habit Sheffield United and Tottenham Hotspur both share

Academics at the CIES Football Observatory, based in Switzerland, rank United third out of the division’s 20 member clubs after calculating how many times their players carry the ball beyond an opponent (7.22) rather than simply rely on passing it during the course of a game. Spurs, led by Jose Mourinho, are only four places lower with an average figure of 6.33.

However, only 58.2 percent of United’s attempted dribbles have a successful outcome. Spurs (55.5) are even less clinical by this measure, which suggests the strategy Chris Wilder formulates for Sunday’s contest will revolve around the importance of maintaining shape out of possession; limiting the visitors’ ability to pick a pass and forcing them to try and run with the ball instead; exploiting one of the few weaknesses in their armoury.

It was a trick United performed almost to perfection last season, when goals from Sander Berge, Lys Mousset and Oli McBurnie helped them secure a 3-1 victory over Spurs in July.

“We stayed solid, we stayed in the game and wrecked incredibly hard,” Ben Osborn, a member of their starting eleven that day, said as he outlined the approach Wilder has been working on. “We made it difficult for them, and got around their attacking players. But it will be a slightly different challenge now, because of how they set up.”

Aston Villa are the most successful dribblers in the competition (69.4) with United’s fellow strugglers Fulham (66.2) in second place.

According to the CIES, Villa are the second best side at this aspect of the game across Europe’s big five leagues. Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg top the list while Huesca of La Liga are third. Juventus are Serie A’s highest ranking club, while Juventus and Stade Brestois lead the way in Serie A and Ligue 1.

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