Sheffield United vs. Aston Villa – EPL, March 3, 2021

Confirmation of relegation will probably come in the weeks ahead for Sheffield United. But for now, Chris Wilder needs his team to do everything it can to cling onto its Premier League status.

But getting anything from a game with Aston Villa might be tricky, with the West Midlands side having worked out how to win even when Jack Grealish is not available.

Sheffield United does not tend to lose games by many goals – but it does invariably end up on the losing side. So, BetOnline offering Villa as the favorite is hardly a surprise. But the price does still look like good value as Dean Smith’s side attempts to keep up in the race for European qualification.

Liverpool might have lost four in a row, but it was still going to be a huge ask for Sheffield United to continue that trend at the weekend. In the end, the Blades played well – especially goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale – and kept the game goalless until after the halftime break.

But the home team’s strikers were unable to make the most of the parity and, not for the first time, Sheffield United fell behind just after the break and never got back into the game. It is only a matter of time now until the Blades’ fate is sealed, and it would not be a surprise if the players were more focused on the upcoming FA Cup quarterfinal instead of league fixtures.

Villa has only the league to concentrate on now, and manager Dean Smith will be happy that his players stepped up at the weekend and overcame a strangely subdued Leeds. Jack Grealish was missing through injury again, but his teammates came through for the first time without him this season to end up claiming all three points at Elland Road.

That win should really boost confidence in a squad that has sometimes looked like it is waiting for Grealish to do something before it really gets going. The England midfielder could miss this game as well, but there is more than enough talent in the squad to make up for his absence.

Villa still has two games in hand on the majority of the clubs above it in the league – and is only six points off a Champions League spot going into the midweek fixtures. I’m not sure that Villa can make it into the top four, but a Europa League place is certainly achievable – and three points here will help towards that end.