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Sheffield United were relegated to the Championship on Saturday after getting thumped 5-1 at Newcastle United.
The visitors took the lead through Anel Ahmedhodzic’s header and could’ve added to their lead. But Newcastle roared back with five goals to ensure Sheffield United’s latest Premier League stay lasted just a single season.
Accusations of the Blades being the worst team in Premier League history persist. Derby County won once while collecting a meager 11 points in the 2007-08 season, and Sheffield United have already outdone those bleak figures, but the South Yorkshire side’s defense is on course to be the leakiest in the competition’s history.
Swindon Town hold the record for the most goals conceded in a Premier League campaign at 100 – but that was in 1993-94 when the top flight had two more teams and was therefore a 42-game slog. With three matches left of their 38-game term, Sheffield United have allowed 97 goals.
On a goals-conceded-per-game basis, Sheffield United – overseen by Paul Heckingbottom until Chris Wilder returned to the helm in December – are comfortably worse than John Gorman’s Swindon.
Goals conceded per game
| 1993-94 Swindon | 2023-24 Sheffield United |
|---|---|
| 2.38 | 2.77 |
The Blades have already set a record for the most goals conceded at home in a Premier League season at 51 and counting. Newcastle’s haul of 13 goals against Sheffield United – they won 8-0 at Bramall Lane in September – is also the most a team has recorded against a Premier League rival in a single campaign.
Sheffield United’s chances of survival took a hit when the club hierarchy sanctioned the sales of Iliman Diaye and Sander Berge days before the season began. The loss of midfielder Berge ripped a safety blanket away from the backline and the defensive recruits – Auston Trusty, Luke Thomas (whose loan from Leicester City was cut short in January), Yasser Larouci, Mason Holgate, and goalkeeper Ivo Grbic – ultimately didn’t offer enough protection from Premier League attacks.
Sheffield United will match Swindon’s Premier League record if they allow three goals across their remaining fixtures against Nottingham Forest (home), Everton (away), and Tottenham Hotspur (home).
