Brighton 1-1 Sheffield United: Danny Welbeck scores late leveller as Blades winless streak remains

Sheffield United were four minutes away from their first Premier League win of the season but Danny Welbeck rescued a point for Brighton in a 1-1 draw.

The Blades did it the hard way too with having to play 50 minutes with 10 men after John Lundstram was dismissed following a VAR review for a dangerous tackle on Joel Veltman.

In what has been the worst start to a season in top division history, Chris Wilder's winless side thought substitute Jayden Bogle scored an unlikely winner (63) - on his Premier League debut.

However, Brighton, who looked to be struggling for inspiration, nicked a late equalised when Welbeck fired home from close range and they hit the post in injury time when Alireza Jahanbakhsh somehow missed from close range.

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The result leaves the Blades without a win and bottom of the Premier League. In total, Wilder's team are without a win in their last 16 matches, since a 3-0 win vs Chelsea in July.

Meanwhile, Brighton are just two points above the relegation zone and have still only won once at home in 2020.

How battling Blades came close to ending run…

Clear-cut chances were few and far between as Lewis Dunk headed over and Aaron Connolly forced a decent save from Aaron Ramsdale, while Neal Maupay had two close-range efforts blocked.

Wilder sensed the game was moving too quickly in Brighton's direction so decided to make a tactical switch midway through the half, substituting the wasteful John Fleck for striker Oliver Burke.

The change triggered their first meaningful attempt when David McGoldrick - scorer of both goals against United - saw a 20-yard free-kick touched wide by Seagulls goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.

The visitors were enjoying their best spell of the game at that stage before the sending off of Lundstram halted their momentum.

Referee Peter Bankes initially produced a yellow card when the midfielder overran the ball and lunged at Joel Veltman, before delighting the limited home crowd by upgrading the punishment to red having watched a replay of the incident on a pitchside monitor.

Playing with an extra man should have given Brighton the perfect opportunity to end their dismal run at home but their play was ponderous.

And, despite their numerical advantage, Albion were almost caught out on the counter-attack just before the hour mark.

Burke burst behind Brighton's advanced backline and, after pulling the ball back, the unmarked Enda Stevens drilled wide.

Brighton continued to be camped in United's half but failed to heed the earlier warning as they fell behind.

McGoldrick's willing run in behind was found by Burke and he slipped a ball back for Bogle was on hand to drill home the cutback via a hefty touch off Adam Webster.

Brighton's response was limp though. Connolly headed off target with the goal gaping before the visitors broke and Burke squandered an excellent chance to make the game safe when blazing over inside the box.

That miss came back to bite Wilder's men.

Leandro Trossard's ball into the box broke for Welbeck to chest down and smash home from inside the six-yard box.

It could have been worse for them in the dying moments but Jahanbakhsh could only nod against the frame of the goal during a frantic finish.

The Blades, who look to be returning to somewhere akin to the levels of last season, deserved that late slice of luck to grab a deserved point.

Man of the match: Chris Basham

If something needed sorting out, Basham was your man for the Blades. His 12 match clearances was five more than any other player on the pitch as he adapted to switching from part of a back three to a defensive midfield role in the style of a very intelligent footballer. Only three players have made more than 12 clearances in one match this season, just showing how relentless he was at defending his box.

Opta stats

• Sheffield United have won just two points from 14 Premier League games this season - the lowest total by an English top-flight side at this stage of a campaign (assuming 3pts/win).
• Bogle became the fifth player to score on his Premier League debut for Sheffield United, after Brian Deane (1992), Willie Falconer (1993), Rob Hulse (2006) and Billy Sharp (2019).
• Welbeck has scored his eighth Premier League goal as a substitute and first since scoring for Arsenal vs West Ham in August 2018.
• Lundstram was sent off in a league game for the first time since March 2016 for Oxford vs Stevenage in League Two.

What's next?

Brighton have a seven-day break before their next fixture at West Ham on December 27. Meanwhile, the Blades are back in action on Boxing Day with a home fixture against Everton.

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