Sheffield United vs Bristol City predictions: Blades should stay in control
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- Sheffield United are in a commanding position after their 3-0 first-leg victory
- Bristol City's away record does not bode well for miracle hopes
- Recommended bet: Sheffield United to win
Sheffield United look destined to gain a place in the Championship play-off final after claiming a 3-0 lead in the first leg of their semi-final against Bristol City.
A red card for Robins defender Rob Dickie just before half-time proved key as Harrison Burrows' penalty and second-half strikes from Andre Brooks and Callum O'Hare put the Blades on the cusp of a Wembley date as they prepare for Monday's return clash.
Team news
Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder will be able to boost his squad after saying on Friday that Ben Brereton Diaz, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi and Femi Seriki should all be involved in the Bramall Lane clash.
City will be without defender Dickie following his red card in the first clash.
Hayden Roberts could come into the side after being introduced at half-time on Thursday.
The stats
- Bristol City have won just one of their last 15 Championship away matches
- Sheffield United have failed to score in just three of their home league outings this season
- The Blades have won 12 of their 23 home league games without conceding this term
- Seven of Bristol City's last nine league matches have produced at least three goals
- The Robins have lost three of their last four games
Prediction
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Thursday's first leg could not have gone better for Sheffield United as they look to gain a place in the Championship play-off final, and Wilder's side should be able to complete the job when Bristol City visit Bramall Lane on Monday.
City will feel they were hard done by following Dickie's debatable red card in the closing stages of the first half, and the task of recovering from a 3-0 deficit looks almost impossible against a team who finished 22 points ahead of them this season.
The visitors' away record is also a cause for concern as they have claimed just one victory on the road in their last 15 outings, a 2-0 success at Millwall.
And while United fans were disappointed that their team could not run Leeds and Burnley closer in the promotion race, they seem to have got their poor form out of their system and they should complete the job in style.
The only defeat they have suffered in their last six games was against the resolute Clarets and they were virtually impenetrable on their own patch in the first half of the season.
City earned a 1-1 draw in South Yorkshire in March, but needed a last-minute goal to do that and they hardly mustered a shot in their recent 4-0 defeat at Leeds, so their best chance of progressing looks to have slipped away.
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