Clarets ready for Monday night game

Last updated : 20 April 2009 By Tony Scholes

End of season games can be just that, end of season games, but there is no chance of that as both Burnley and Sheffield United continue to look for the points that can get them into the Premier League.

It's quite simple for Burnley, two wins would make us mathematically certain to win a play off place, but for the Blades their place in the top six is assured and now they are chasing Birmingham for the second automatic promotion place.

This is the first time we've been in this sort of finale to a season for seven years. We sit with 69 points from 43 games, exactly the same as in that 2001/02 season. This time though we know that two wins from the last three will do it.

Our Opponents


Sheffield United are the form team in the Championship. They haven't been beaten since Sheffield Wednesday completed the double over them at the beginning of February. That defeat was at Bramall Lane and you have to go back to October for their last away defeat, that too coming against their City rivals.

They are the league's outstanding team in 2009 with just two home defeats, their only league defeats since we beat them 3-2 at Bramall Lane. And since that defeat at Hillsborough they have won seven and drawn seven of fourteen league games.

Click HERE to see all Sheffield United's results this season


This one is as tough as they come. Sheffield United will be hoping to go straight up but we could just meet again in the play offs.

Team News


Sun Jihai (ankle) and Matthew Kilgallon (medial knee ligament) are the major doubts for Kevin Blackwell's team. Kilgallon would almost certainly start if fit but if he doesn't make it then Leigh Bromby will partner Chris Morgan at the back with Kyle Naughton at full back.

Also ruled out is former Barnsley midfielder Brian Howard who is serving a suspension after accumulating ten yellow cards.

Their expected team is: Paddy Kenny, Kyle Naughton, Chris Morgan, Leigh Bromby, Gary Naysmith, David Cotterill, Lee Hendrie, Nick Montgomery, Greg Halford, Jamie Ward, Darius Henderson. Subs: Kyle Walker, John-Jo O'Toole, Stephen Quinn, Arturo Lupoli, Craig Beattie.

Click HERE to see the full Sheffield United squad


The big question regarding the Clarets is the fitness of our strikers. Martin Paterson was only fit enough to be named as a sub a week last Saturday and didn't make the squad at all at Cardiff. Steven Thompson hasn't featured in any of the last five games since picking up an ankle ligament injury in the 5-0 win over Forest.

Other than that I expect it to be the same team as played at Ninian Park so if neither Paterson nor Thompson make it, and the latest suggestions from inside Turf Moor are that they won't, then we will probably name an unchanged team.

We could line up: Brian Jensen, Rhys Williams, Clarke Carlisle, Steven Caldwell, Christian Kalvenes, Graham Alexander, Chris Eagles, Wade Elliott, Chris McCann, Robbie Blake, Jay Rodriguez. Subs: Diego Penny, Michael Duff, Joey Gudjonsson, Kevin McDonald, Alex MacDonald.

Last Season


Andrew Cole
Andrew Cole - scored the Burnley goal
It is just over a year ago since Sheffield United last played at the Turf, but things were different for both clubs. They were recovering from having been lumbered with Bryan Robson whilst we were in a really poor run of form that had seen us lose three out of the last four games.

If we had any lingering hopes of reaching the play offs they were very much ended as Sheffield United won the game 2-1 and we didn't deserve anything from it.

Just past the half hour David Unsworth, who had received a considerable amount of abuse from the visiting fans, gave away a free kick. It didn't appear to be a problem some 35 yards or so from goal but James Beattie hit a shot that sailed past the helpless Brian Jensen into his top right hand corner.

We tried to get forward, and we did have a lot of possession but we weren't creating anything. The Blades looked comfortable and they doubled their advantage early in the second half. David Cotterill skipped past Stephen Jordan, playing his first game in almost four months, far too easily, but no one in the middle picked up Billy Sharp who had an easy header to make it 2-0.

But ten minutes from the end substitute Joey Gudjonsson played in Andrew Cole who hit a shot past Paddy Kenny to reduce the arrears and he almost got a second within a couple of minutes. But it ended 2-1 and we could have had no real complaints after another disappointing show.

The teams were;

Burnley: Brian Jensen, Graham Alexander, Steven Caldwell, David Unsworth, Stephen Jordan, Wade Elliott, James O'Connor (Joey Gudjonsson 61), Chris McCann, Robbie Blake (Ade Akinbiyi 61), Andrew Cole, Kyle Lafferty. Subs not used: Gabor Kiraly, Michael Duff, Mark Randall.

Sheffield United: Paddy Kenny, Derek Geary, Chris Morgan, Matthew Kilgallon, Gary Naysmith, David Cotterill (Ugo Ehiogu 90), Gary Speed, Michael Tonge, Stephen Quinn, James Beattie (Keith Gillespie 77), Billy Sharp (Rob Hulse 66). Subs not used: John Halls, Jonathan Stead.

Previous games against Sheffield United


Previous 20 Seasons

Season

Div

Ven

Result

Att

Scorers

1992/93

FAC

a

2-2

23,041

Heath(2)

..

h

2-4

19,061

Heath Monington

1994/95

1

h

4-2

11,475

Robinson Hoyland Davis Gayle

..

a

0-2

13,349

.

2000/01

1

h

2-0

16,635

Payton(2 1pen)

..

a

0-2

20,013

.

2001/02

1

h

2-0

13,166

Taylor Cook

..

a

0-3

19,003

.

2002/03

1

h

0-1

12,868

.

..

a

2-4

17,359

Taylor Blake

2003/04

1

a

0-1

20,967

.

.

.

h

3-2

11,452

Blake(2 1pen) I Moore

2004/05

C

h

1-1

16,956

Hyde

..

a

1-2

19,374

Akinbiyi

2005/06

C

h

1-2

11,802

Akinbiyi

..

a

0-3

23,118

.

2007/08

C

a

0-0

25,306

.

..

a

1-2

11,693

Cole

2008/09

C

a

3-2

24,702

Paterson Alexander(pen) Eagles



Click HERE to see all our results against Sheffield United