Sheffield Utd – Bristol City

Guests will rightly kick off the season in Sheffield

Sheffield United can consider themselves the unluckiest club in the Championship after last season. The "Blades" spent almost the entire previous season in the top two clubs of the division, vying for direct promotion to the Premier League. However, the final stretch of the season was a failure for Chris Wilder's team - the direct promotion places were "given" to Burnley and Leeds United. Falling ten points behind their rivals, the "Blades" received the top seed in the playoffs, made it to the final, but lost their chance for promotion to Sunderland in a very dramatic style at Wembley. Due to this unfortunate failure, Wilder lost his position, and a month ago he was replaced by the young Spanish coach Ruben Selles. Bookmakers once again see Sheffield United as one of the main contenders for promotion. Currently, the "Blades" are ranked third behind Ipswich Town and Southampton. In contrast to their opponent in the opening round of the Championship, Bristol City can consider last season a success. For the first time in ten complete seasons of England's second-tier division, the "Robins" reached the playoffs. Indeed, during this period, they finished in the top half of the league table for the second time. Sheffield United was the opponent of Bristol City in the playoff semi-finals, but there was no competitive struggle. The "Blades" won both matches 3-0 and confidently made their way to the aforementioned final. The bookmakers have identified the home side as the favourites for the upcoming match, offering odds of 1.73 for their victory. In the off-season, Sheffield United decided not to make significant changes to their squad. Ahmedhodzic was sold to Feyenoord, and Vinicius Souza went to Wolfsburg. The "Blades" strengthened their ranks with loan signings of Barry, Saumare, and Bindon. Several young players were also acquired. Bristol City made even fewer changes. The only notable mention is the sale of Gardner-Hickman to Birmingham City. Until the playoff demolitions of last season, Sheffield United and Bristol City usually played competitive matches. None of the five meetings from 2022 to March 2025 ended with more than a one-goal difference in favour of the "Blades." We bet that the visitors will start the season respectably in Sheffield.