Sheffield United suffer narrow defeat as late chances go begging at Southampton
Blades were unable to find a breakthrough in a 1-0 loss to Southampton
Sheffield United were left empty-handed in their Championship clash against Southampton at St Mary's, with Leo Scienza's deflected strike in the 7th minute proving decisive in the 1-0 defeat.
Blades boss Chris Wilder lamented missed opportunities as his side nearly forced a late equaliser during a strong second-half showing.
Substitute Patrick Bamford came close to levelling the match in the 89th minute, but Saints goalkeeper Daniel Peretz denied him with a crucial save.
United, sitting 17th in the Championship table, are four points above the relegation zone following their second-consecutive league defeat.
Wilder, whose squad has been impacted by injuries and suspensions, said of the game, “We’ve got to take something from that game, 100 percent, especially second half. First half we were a little bit leggy and took our time to get going, but we were a lot better second half.
“Even the last five, 10 minutes, we could possibly win that 3-1 with the chances we had, but we’ve got to convert those situations.
“As much as the defeat pains me, we’ve got a team that’s having a right go. But I want us to have a right go and get something from the game, and I certainly think we deserved something."
He added, “It’s a tough gig at the moment for everybody, losing the players we have done. But we’ve just got to fight our way through it, and that’s what we’ll do.”