Bristol City and Sheffield United will kick things off in Championship playoffs when they meet on Thursday night in the first leg of their semi-final tie.
After the nail-biting finish of the season, in which Bristol City secured a spot in the playoffs on the last matchday, the Robins will now try to get the advantage against Sheff Utd, who were in the race for direct promotion for a long time.
Bristol City nearly botched their playoff berth with poor results lately, losing twice in a row before the final game, in which they needed a win to secure the playoffs.
The win never came as they only managed to draw with Preston at home, but it was Sheff Utd who pushed them into the playoffs by holding Blackburn to a draw. Had they lost to Rovers, Bristol City wouldn't be here.
Sheffield United had secured third place in the standings way before the final matchday. In fact, they were in the race for direct promotion with Leeds and Burnley the entire season, but only two wins in the final six games of the season meant that the Blades will have to seek promotion through the playoffs.
How the bookies view it: Expecting a close game
The bookies don't see either team as a favourite in this match, at least not a clear one. In fact, the odds on both teams on Boylesports are 17/10, while a draw is not far off either with 2/1 odds.
Head to head: No wins for the Robins lately
The two meetings between Bristol City and Sheffield United this season were both close, with goals on both sides, which comes with 21/20 odds at Boylesports for this match. The Blades got the better of Bristol City away from home, while their second duel ended in a draw in Sheffield.
The last time Bristol City beat this rival was in 2019 and they've since gone seven games in a row without a victory against Sheff Utd.
Players to watch: Bristol City's forwards to have a tough job
Sheffield United have been great on the defensive end this season, keeping a clean sheet in 52% of their matches. However, they failed to achieve this in both games against Bristol City.
So, the hosts will hope to once again break the Blades' barrier and to get them there, they will rely on Anis Mehmeti and Nahki Wells, two top scorers in the team with 12 and 10 goals, respectively. Boylesports have Mehmeti scoring at 11/4 odds, while the odds on Wells finding the net are 5/2.
On the other hand, Sheffield United will look for goals from their top scorer Tyrese Campbell, who found the net in the league 10 times this season. The odds on Campbell scoring in this match are 11/4 on Boylesports.
Predicted line-ups
Luke McNally and Cameron Pring will miss this match for the hosts as they deal with injuries, while the guests will be without Ayman Benarous, Mark Sykes, Ollie Arblaster, and Rhys Norrington-Davies.
Bristol City: O'Leary, Tanner, Dickie, Vyner, Hirakawa, Williams, Knight, McCrorie, Mehmeti, Twine, Wells
Sheffield United: Davies, Gilchrist, Ahmedhodzic, Holding, McCallum, De Souza Costa, Peck, Brooks, O'Hare, Hamer, Cannon
Anything else catch the eye?
As we already mentioned, both teams have scored in both previous meetings between Bristol City and Sheff United this season, so we wouldn't be surprised to see that happen again.
Also, given the importance of the match, we can see the game ending in a draw, which would set up the stage for a deciding second leg in Sheffield. On top of that, a half-time draw at 20/23 odds on Boylesports also sounds tempting, especially since the last five matches between these teams have all been scoreless at half times.
This England Championship match between Bristol City and Sheffield United will be played on and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Bristol City vs Sheffield United prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
GambleAware