Sheffield United is bad. But to be fair, the same has been said of Burnley.
Whom:
Burnley vs. Sheffield United
What:
EPL match number 15 (for the Clarets)
Where:
Turf Moor
When:
12:00 PM American Central Standard Time
How to Watch:
Streaming only, evidently, at least here in the States (Peacock)
What’s at Stake:
Burnley’s fallen back into 17th, trailing Brighton on goal differential. A win’s necessary to guarantee staying above the relegation zone heading into the weekend, but with Fulham visiting Tottenham tomorrow, it’s likely Burnley’s safe from that area regardless of what happens today. That’s a bit misleading in terms of impact, though. This is one of the easiest matches of the year for Burnley. Taking advantage of it would be (expert analysis alert) good.
The Odds:
NBC’s saying PointsBet is saying Burnley’s at +135 to win, Sheffield United’s at +215, and a draw’s at +210, implying Burnley’s got about a 40% chance of winning and a 70% chance of getting at least a point.
The Opponent:
Sheffield United’s been terrible so far this year, with no wins, two draws, and thirteen losses to their credit. Ten of the losses have come by only one goal, but I have no idea how common that is in soccer and I feel like it’s not all that unusual. Burnley beat these guys on penalty kicks back in September in the Carabao Cup (#SwampType), but that doesn’t exactly hold a lot of bearing here because 1) it was in September and 2) teams don’t try all that hard in the early rounds of the Carabao Cup (#SwampType).
Burnley News:
The ALK Capital sale’s supposed to go through in the next few days, which sounds like it means Burnley’ll have some money to work with over the January transfer window. Hot dog. (When you say, “Hot dog,” does that mean something is good or does it only mean something is bad? Because I mean this is good.)
In injury news, Dwight McNeil and Robbie Brady might be back (guess they were hurt against Leeds), but Jack Cork, Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson, and Matěj Vydra are out (if you are also wondering, no, I don’t know if Vydra’s injury was the reason he wasn’t rostered against Wolverhampton).
Bertie News:
Not a word.
