Sheffield United have found their new Sharp & it's not Brereton or Cannon
da bet sport： With the long, drawn-out international break nearly over, the competitive Championship will soon kick back into gear to give us more entertaining clashes to savour.
da wazamba： Sheffield United’s meeting with Coventry City this coming Friday night promises to be another spectacle to behold in the second tier, with Frank Lampard’s Sky Blues on a mission to nail down a playoff spot when heading to Bramall Lane, whilst the Blades cling onto their automatic promotion dreams.
One misstep could see the South Yorkshire outfit fall out of the coveted top two spots, with Chris Wilder hopeful that the likes of Ben Brereton Diaz and Tom Cannon can finally step up to the mark in the crunch games to come, after largely disappointing as statement January additions.
How Brereton & Cannon have performed at Sheffield United
To help boost his side’s firepower, Wilder welcomed Brereton Diaz and Cannon to the building during the hectic mid-season transfer window, well aware that the potent pairing boast 75 career strikes in the second tier.
The Chile international has shown signs of his previous Blackburn Rovers best without blowing anyone away, with the short-term loanee picking up three goals and two assists from 11 appearances at Bramall Lane.
Cannon, on the other hand, has just been a letdown from minute one of his bumper £10m move from Leicester City, with the Irishman yet to find the back of the net for his new employers from eight clashes.
Unfortunately, the out-of-sorts 22-year-old has found himself out of his new manager’s starting lineup plans due to Sheffield United’s next Billy Sharp…
Wilder's next Billy Sharp
This will feel like a wild comparison to make for many Blades supporters reading, considering Sharp is held in very high esteem to the red and white half of South Yorkshire to this day, having bagged a ridiculous 129 goals during two spells at his hometown side.
But, much like the 39-year-old veteran felt whenever he graced the Bramall Lane pitch, Tyrese Campbell will feel very much at home donning his new United colours, with the end of his time at former employers Stoke City, unfortunately, putting him through the wringer.
Injury issues at the Potters saw Campbell miss an eye-watering 343 days of action in total during his bumpy six years at the club, leading to a low 36 goals being registered from 164 games.
To draw comparisons, Sharp also struggled to find his goalscoring groove in the build-up to his big return to South Yorkshire, with unmemorable spells at Leeds United and Southampton passing him by, before the familiar doors of Bramall Lane opened back up for him.
Sheffield United’s top 5 goalscorers in the league – 24/25
Player
Games
Goals scored
1. Tyrese Campbell
26
9
2. Gustavo Hamer
34
7
3. Jesurun Rak-Sakyi
29
6
= 4. Harrison Burrows
35
5
= 4. Kieffer Moore
22
5
Stats by Sofascore
Now, much like Sharp managed when diving back in at United, Campbell has become his side’s most reliable sharpshooter up top, with the 6-foot centre-forward the promotion-chasing club’s top scorer in league action with nine strikes fired home from 26 contests.
Three of those goals have come during his team’s last five league encounters, with a hope that the 25-year-old can follow even more in Sharp’s footsteps by guiding Wilder’s men to a promotion success, considering the EFL legend has three of these accolades next to his name playing for the Blades.
If the revitalised number 23 can hammer home more strikes like this venomous effort at Loftus Road between now and the end of the season, Wilder and Co could be heading for an instant return to the Premier League, with Campbell no doubt seen as a modern great thereafter.
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