Sheffield United will be looking to turn their season around when they take on Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday evening, 21 October 2023.

The Blades claimed a 2-1 win at Old Trafford in the sides' most recent meeting in January 2021, with Kean Bryan and Oliver Burke both scoring for the Blades, while Harry Maguire found the net for Manchester United.

The Red Devils were already involved in some high-scoring affairs on their visits to the Bramall Lane this century, with a 3-2 win in their most recent one (December 2020).

Sheffield United, however, have struggled to beat Manchester United at the Bramall Lane for quite some time, last earning a victory over the Red Devils here on the opening weekend (15 August 1992) of the inaugural Premier League campaign in 1992-93.

Sheffield United remain one of two sides in the Premier League yet to taste a victory, the other being Bournemouth.

Looking for their first win since the final day of last season (when they still were in the Championship), The Blades will be desperate to add some flame into their Premier League campaign. Sheffield United return to Bramall Lane for the first time since the humiliating 8-0 loss to Newcastle United on September 24^th.

Paul Heckingbottom's side suffered yet another setback when they lost 3-1 to Fulham at Craven Cottage in their last game prior to the break. With just one point from their opening 8 Premier League games, The Blades are rock bottom, having the worst defending record (conceding 22 goals) as well as the joint second-worst attack in the top-flight.

The Blades host Manchester United before making a trip to Arsenal next weekend. The only point they have picked up so far this season was in a 2-2 home draw with Everton in early-September. As a result, Sheffield United now hold the joint-worst start to a season at this stage in the Premier League era

Heckingbottom's side also suffered an early exit in the League Cup after getting knocked out by League One side Lincoln City in the second round.

Captain John Egan picked up an Achilles tendon injury during his side's 2-0 defeat at West Ham United a few weeks ago and the Republic of Ireland defender is set for a long spell on the sidelines.

Fellow defender Chris Basham, who captained the team in Egan's absence, is also set to be sidelined for some time after a horror ankle injury against Fulham last time out. Thus, the USA defender Auston Trusty is tipped to get the nod alongside Jack Robinson and Anel Ahmedhodzic at centre-back.  

With two goals in seven top-flight matches, Gustavo Hamer is Sheffield United's top scorer this term. The Brazil-born Dutch midfielder joined The Blades over the summer and will hope to inspire his teammates for a better performance against an underperforming Manchester United side this weekend.

Fellow summer arrival Vinícius Souza is set to keep his starting spot in the middle along with Gustavo Hamer and Oliver Norwood. Manchester City loanee James McAtee will also be pushing for a start here.

Oliver McBurnie scored 13 goals in 38 Championship games for Sheffield United last season (starting 25 of them) and the Leeds-born Scottish forward is looking for his first goal this term. McBurnie was the hero for Sheffield United when his 90^th minute equalizer rescued a point in a 3-3 draw against Manchester United in November 2019.

Tom Davies and Daniel Jebbison are also ruled out for Sheffield United, while the likes of Rhys Norrington-Davies, Max Lowe, George Baldock, Ben Osborn, and William Osula are all doubts.

Erik ten Hag's side sit 10^th in the Premier League, winning four and losing four of their opening eight matches. That’s their worst start to a season to any of their 31 seasons in the competition.

Manchester United travel to South Yorkshire on the back of a last-gasp 2-1 comeback win over Brentford at Old Trafford. Scott McTominay's brace sealed a much-needed outcome after a miserable week for United, who have lost back-to-back home games against Crystal Palace and Galatasaray in the week before.

The Red Devils are also forced to fight for their Champions League campaign's salvation, with Erik ten Hag's side losing their opening two games to Bayern Munich and Galatasaray. Thus, they need to be perfect in the upcoming back-to-back matches with Danish champions FC Copenhagen as United simply can't afford to drop any more points.

Marcus Rashford scored a brace in Manchester United's 3-2 win at Sheffield United in December 2020 and the England forward will be looking to build on his Premier League tally against one of his favorite victims.

Bruno Fernandes was once again a key figure during Portugal's impressive Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with strong performances against both Slovakia and Bosnia and Herzegovina during the international break. The Manchester United skipper will be looking to carry his form in England as the Portuguese playmaker is yet to score or assist since he bagged the winner in a 1-0 win at Burnley last month.

Still looking for his first league goal, Rasmus Hojlund scored in Denmark's hard-fought 2-1 win over minnows San Marino on Tuesday. Unlike his instant impact in Champions League matches, the Danish forward will be eager to finally open his scoring account in the Premier League. 

Raphael Varane was sidelined for the home match against Brentford before the international break with a minor injury, but the experienced French defender is set to return against Sheffield United.

Spanish left-back Sergio Reguilon is also expected to make his comeback on Saturday, having recovered from a hamstring injury.

Aside from the aforementioned pair, Sofyan Amrabat has also been deemed fit for the trip to South Yorkshire. He was absent for Morocco during the international break with a slight back issue.

The trio could all make the starting XI on Saturday, but Erik ten Hag will be without influential Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, who twisted his ankle on international duty.

Elsewhere, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw, Tyrell Malacia, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Amad Diallo and Kobbie Mainoo are also injured, while Jadon Sancho is out for disciplinary reasons.

Sheffield United: Wes Foderingham - Jack Robinson, Anel Ahmedhodzic, Auston Trusty - Luke Thomas, Oliver Norwood, Vinícius Souza, Gustavo Hamer, Jayden Bogle - Cameron Archer, Oli McBurnie. (3-5-2)

Manchester United: Andre Onana - Sergio Reguilón, Victor Lindelof, Raphael Varane, Diogo Dalot - Sofyan Amrabat, Scott McTominay - Marcus Rashford, Mason Mount, Bruno Fernandes - Rasmus Højlund. (4-2-3-1)

Sheffield United's lack of cutting edge could be a costly thing against a Manchester United side who have been almost perfect when they face struggling sides.

All in all, The Red Devils are unbeaten in 12 top-flight meetings against newly-promoted sides (11-1-0), winning nine in a row.

Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford has been directly involved in six goals (three goals and three assists) in four meetings with Sheffield United.

At first glance, it looks like a match that Manchester United should be capable of winning. Erik ten Hag's men already have the blueprint on how to beat bottom half opponents and should they once again execute it, you can expect a similar outcome as in their trip to Turf Moor a few weeks ago.

However, Sheffield United are in a do-or-die situation as they cannot waste many more opportunities, especially on home soil.

Heckingbottom will be desperate to win points, not least because he currently sits as the favorite to be the next Premier League manager to get sacked. His counterpart Erik ten Hag sits third on that list after Manchester United’s poor start to the season.