Sheffield United vs Sunderland Prediction and Betting Tip- Odds, H2H and Preview Predictions

Sheffield United vs Sunderland Preview

Saturday sees the most expensive match in club football, with the final spot in the 2025/26 Premier League on the line for the winner under the iconic Wembley arch.

Sheffield United swept aside Bristol City in their play-off semi final, winning 6-0 on aggregate. They will be favourites heading into this match, but as we know, in the play-offs, anything can happen. If they do not win on Saturday, the Blades will feel hard done by, as they finished outside the automatics despite collecting an impressive 90 points.

Sunderland meanwhile really had fight to make the showpiece on Saturday. After a poor end to the regular season, they fought magnificently well to defeat Frank Lampard’s Coventry 3-2 on aggregate, as Daniel Ballard leapt highest in the final minutes of extra-time to send the Black Cats on the brink of a Premier League return.

As the game approaches, here is everything you need to know about both sides ahead of kick-off.

How to Watch Sheffield United vs Sunderland

Sheffield United clash with Sunderland at the iconic Wembley Stadium on Saturday 24th May.

TV Channel

You will be able to watch this match on Saturday afternoon on Sky Sports.

• Date: Saturday 24, May
• Kick-off: 15:01 BST
• Channel: Sky Sports Main Event

Key Statistics

• Both sides have an even record in their meetings this season- with the home side winning each game

• Both sides finished third and fourth respectively this season, also holding the third and fourth best defensive records- conceding 36 and 46 overall

• Wilson Isidor leads the scoring charts for The Black Cats with 12 goals, for The Blades it is a joint effort from Tyrese Campbell and Thomas Cannon, who have collected 10 goals each

• Before Sunderland’s play-offs began, they had been winless in their past six, losing five in a row

Sheffield United Preview, Form and Standout Players

Sheffield United Predicted Lineup (4-4-2): Cooper; Burrows, Robinson, Ahmedhodzic, Choudhury; Hamer, Vinicius, Peck, Brewster; Campbell, Moore.

Chris Wilder is likely to have most of his squad available for their most important match of the campaign.

Before their two semi final legs, The Blades ended the regular season with a defeat to runners-up Burnley, a victory over Stoke and a 1-1 draw with then play-off hopefuls Blackburn. They managed Bristol City with relative ease over both legs, winning 3-0 in each, so they will definitely be expected to need to work much harder on Saturday.

Callum O’Hare will look to make a significant impact off the bench, with the midfielder scoring in each leg against The Robins. Their defensive line is expected to remain unchanged, especially after keeping two important clean sheets in their past two.

Sunderland Preview, Form and Standout Players

Sunderland Predicted Lineup (4-4-2): Patterson; Cirkin, O’Nien, Ballard, Hume; Le Fee, Bellingham, Neil, Roberts; Isidor, Mayenda.

Coach Regis Le Bris is expected to keep his lineup unchanged from their play-off semi final win over Coventry City.

As mentioned, Sunderland lost five games in a row to end the season, their final three they were defeated by Blackburn, Oxford and QPR. In all of these games they were also kept scoreless in. In their semi final they managed to find the net on three occasions however, it will worry fans the longer they go without scoring on Saturday.

Jobe Bellingham is very likely to leave the Stadium of Light no matter the result of this match, so he will want to bring back Premier League football back to Sunderland. Mayenda and Isidor both scored against Coventry so will look to make a massive impact and return to the score chart on Saturday.

Head-to-head Comparison

The last five meetings between these sides, Sheffield United have a slight edge, winning on three occasions to Sunderland’s two. This never tends to be a landslide, with all winning sides winning by one goal.

Recent Meetings:

• Sunderland 2-1 Sheffield United, January 1, 2025

• Sheffield United 1-0 Sunderland, November 29, 2024

• Sunderland 1-2 Sheffield United, March 15, 2023

• Sheffield United 2-1 Sunderland, August 17, 2022

• Sheffield United 0-1 Sunderland, September 25, 2019

Betting Tip for Sheffield United vs Sunderland

With a place in the Premier League on the line and some serious cash, all the players will undoubtedly be nervous heading into this play-off final. We do not necessarily expect many goals, but it is sure to be a very entertaining affair with both teams getting the better of each other at their home ground.

Therefore, our team of betting professionals have gone for Sheffield United to Win as the best value tip for this match. A stake of £10 on Highbet with odds of 2.3, could see a potential return of £23.

(Odds Subject to Change)

Final Prediction

Sheffield United 2-1 Sunderland