MERCILESS BLADES CUT VALE TO PIECES
Wilder’s men now sit fifth
RUTHLESS and relentless Sheffield United swept aside Port Vale to leapfrog their opponents in the table, with boss Chris Wilder’s only gripe being that they did not score more goals.
The Blades extended their unbeaten run to eight league games thanks to Ethan Ebanks-Landell’s first-half double and a goal apiece from Mark Duffy and Stefan Scougall.
It made for a disappointing return to Bramall Lane for former Blade Bruno Ribeiro, now in charge at Port Vale, as the visitors failed to build on last week’s first away win of the season.
And having also seen another four Sheffield United goals ruled out for offside, Wilder was encouraged by his team’s refusal to offer any let-up.
“We looked like a team that wanted to get at the opposition with our work ethic,” he enthused. “We wanted to cause them problems and we did that very, very well.
“I never thought, for one second, we took our foot off the gas. We were relentless and ruthless in our approach to winning.
“We were a little bit disappointed not to have extended the lead further in the first half. This is the way we want to play, and the mindset to go and get the third was important.
“It’s a group of players still finding their feet too. There is more to come. We will grow, we will progress and we will get better.”
Matty Done had already had a header ruled out for offside when Ebanks-Landell met John Fleck’s corner to head the Blades in front on 23 minutes.
Fleck thought he had doubled their lead ten minutes later when his long-range shot squirmed under Jak Alnwick’s body but, after referee Mark Heywood consulted with his linesman, it was also ruled out for offside.
Fleck tried his luck again on 36 minutes, this time from much further out, but Alnwick got down well to turn his awkwardly bouncing shot wide.
Still the hosts dominated though and Ebanks-Landell fired in his second on the stroke of half-time, on the half-volley from close range,
after Billy Sharp kept the ball alive from a corner.
Just two minutes into the second half the Blades had a third goal disallowed – Done again the victim of an offside flag after tapping in Duffy’s low cross.
But Duffy put the finishing touches to a fast-paced counterattack from a Vale corner to add a third on 62 minutes, after Ben Purkiss blocked Sharp’s shot on the line.
Sharp was next to be denied by the offside flag after turning in when Jack O’Connell headed back across goal on 65 minutes as the hosts rallied.
Port Vale could have grabbed a consolation on 78 minutes, when Sam Foley was tackled and the ball broke for Alex Jones, but Simon Moore saved one-on-one.
And Scougall put the gloss on United’s victory with six minutes remaining, heading in from close range shortly after coming on as a substitute.
Port Vale coach Andy Smith, another former Blades player, believed Port Vale’s poor defending at set-pieces was ultimately their downfall.
“You have to mark your men and if you don’t do that then you get punished, it’s simple,” he rued. “I’m really disappointed with the set plays.
“The balls come in, you have to be strong enough to deal with it and we weren’t, and we got done. It was just not us at all.
“The way we conceded the goals just wasn’t us. But we’ve had our upsets before and we’ve bounced back. I believe in this bunch, and they have to put in a better performance on Tuesday.
“You have bad days at the office, everyone does. That’s football. So it’s how you react to them and I want to see that reaction on Tuesday.”