Sheffield United - A fan's view
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Thursday, 07, Jun 2007 01:58
Good, bad or just the same old, same old. What the fans made of the 2006-07 season.
It could have been so different. At 15:00 on May 13th, Neil Warnock was a solid bet to outdo the previous season's promotion from the Championship and complete the finest achievement of his career - keeping the Blades on the top flight and gaining the facility to plan for what would hopefully be a second season of real consolidation. Two hours later the unthinkable had happened for side that had started the day as favourites to stay up; under three days later the fine line between stability and fragmentation was further highlighted as, via a dramatic summit meeting in Brussels, time was called upon the manager's seven-and-a-half year tenure.
So what went wrong? Well, beyond the standard range "if only" moments suffered by most sides it's not certain that anything fundamental did. If United had turned up for the first half hour of the game with Wigan; if Claude Davis's disastrous late ricket hadn't dropped them two points against Portsmouth; if Steven Gerrard's honesty in staying on his feet to get a shot away hadn't led to him receiving a penalty for his efforts. True, top scorer Rob Hulse missed the last eight games of the season after breaking his leg at Stamford Bridge - but the reality is that Sheffield United, for all their high tempo, vigour and hard running, were found wanting at the last.
This reading is not intentionally harsh - United gave it a far better shot than many had bargained for. Suspicions in August were that a lack of goals might do for them as opposed to a chronic porousness - and with just eight being scored away from home (along with generally precious little threat when not playing to the Bramall Lane roar) this was effectively borne out. Eight-goal Hulse received willing but ultimately inadequate assistance from the likes of Danny Webber and Christian Nade - and one wonders what might have happened if he had had more time to dovetail with the impressively reborn Jonathan Stead, whose five goals since arriving in January proved a very healthy return.
United's strength arguably lay in a midfield that was full of vigour and gusto, although sometimes short of poise. Michael Tonge provided the occasional moment of true class - including a free-kick against West Ham that seemed to have put the Blades well and truly on the road to safety - while the flame-haired Alan Quinn proved a welcome addition to the scene. The startling versatility of Phil Jagielka meant that he occupied positions in both the middle and defensive fours with considerable aplomb - but an impending England B cap is surely just the start of greater things for him.
Grade: D - impossible to be overly generous when relegation proved the season's denoeuement, but also difficult to be hyper-critical of a side which played above itself at times and came mightily close to confounding its close-season critics.
High Point
The 1-0 win against Arsenal - and commanding performance to boot - on December 30th took United to 15th in the table and raised genuine hopes of a sprint to safety. A 3-0 triumph against West Ham, of all teams, in April was perhaps better at the time but proved to be the cruellest of false dawns.
Low Point
The final whistle on May 13th - signalling what few seriously thought would come to pass two hours earlier.
Fan's Player of the Year
A tricky one - Hulse arguably silenced a few of the more vociferous critics of his transfer prior to his injury, while Paddy Kenny remains a superficially unlikely goalkeeping hero and Keith Gillespie, thought by many to be a spent force at this level, came up with some of the best showings of his career. But it was Jagielka who really stole the scene, as many expected - a jack, and master to boot, of all trades, his excellence often seemed to raise the games of those around him, and his stunning last-minute strike which secured United's first win of the season against Middlesbrough will be remembered by fans as a contribution that epitomised his importance to the cause.
Needs for Next Season
Faith in new manager Bryan Robson would be a decent start. His appointment has raised one or two eyebrows but, supported by a decent war chest and squad which is unlikely to be completely decimated, he should have few problems propelling the Blades to a high top-six position in the Championship at the very least. Jagielka will surely leave, as may Tonge, but otherwise the spine of the side should remain. A young, pacy centre back to keep Morgan, Davis and Matt Kilgallon on their toes could be one area to examine, as may the left side of defence. Stead is yet to entirely convince over the course of a full season and another striker with a proven Championship record may be sought for this most attritional of leagues. More end product will be sought from the promising Colin Kazim-Richards, who signed during the season from Brighton and proved full of raw, pacy potential cutting in from wide areas. In all, United simply need to stick together, warm to their new management and tweak one or two areas to re-align to the very different demands of the Championship.
Nick Ames
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