Sheffield Utd v Wolves prediction: Championship lineups, stats and tips

Sheffield Utd have not lost at Bramall Lane this season, but three draws from their opening four league games say plenty about their cutting edge. Sunday brings Wolves to Yorkshire, a side who have scored more goals than all but two clubs in the Championship this term.

Wolves arrive in seventh place having put 13 goals past their last five opponents. That run includes a 4-1 win over Stoke City and a 3-1 win at Preston. Sheffield Utd, meanwhile, followed a 3-1 home defeat to Norwich with a 2-1 win at Blackburn, results that sum up an inconsistent start.

The home side's home form is the concern. They have won one, drawn one and lost one of their three Championship games at Bramall Lane, shipping five goals across the two matches they have conceded in. Their average of 1.7 goals conceded per home game is the highest figure attached to either side of this fixture.

They did show encouraging signs at Blackburn last time out, a 2-1 win that snapped a run of one win in four. Two wins and three draws from their last six across all competitions, but only one clean sheet in that spell, a 0-0 with Birmingham in their opening home game. Eight scored, eight conceded, in six league games so far.

Wolves have lost only once in their last five league games, a 4-2 defeat at West Ham, and were held 2-2 at Birmingham last time out. They sit seventh with 11 points from six games, three points off the automatic promotion pace, and firmly in the play-off picture already at this early stage.

Their attack has been the story. An average of 2.6 goals a game across their last five, built on 53.4% average possession and 16 shots a match, more than double Sheffield Utd's 8.67. This is a Wolves side built to create chances in bulk, even if their away form (2.3 goals for, 2.3 against per game this season) shows they are just as capable of leaking them.

Sheffield Utd's underlying form reads two wins, three draws and one loss from their last six. Three of those results have been draws, evidence of a side finding it hard to turn control into points. Wolves have won two, drawn two and lost one of their last five, a pattern built on scoring goals rather than shutting them out. The home side's draws suggest resilience without cutting edge. Wolves' pattern suggests goals in bulk, in either direction.

Wolves sit seventh in the Championship with 11 points from six games, three points off the top of the table where West Ham and Swansea sit level on 14. A win here would close that gap further and keep them firmly inside the play-off picture. Sheffield Utd's own record, two wins, three draws and one defeat from six, is worth nine points on its own terms and keeps them in touch with that same pack, but a home defeat to a side already scoring so freely would be a damaging step back at this early stage of the campaign.

Wolves have the clear edge historically, winning 6 of the last 10 meetings to Sheffield Utd's 3, with 1 drawn. The average of 2 goals per meeting sits below what either side is producing right now, and the both-teams-to-score rate across those 10 games is only 20%, with just 30% going over 2.5 goals. The last meeting went the way of the recent trend, Wolves winning 1-0 at Molineux in February 2024.

That history looks out of step with the current form of both sides. Wolves have not kept a clean sheet all season and Sheffield Utd have conceded in each of their last two home league games, so a repeat of the low-scoring pattern from previous meetings looks unlikely. The numbers point towards goals at both ends breaking the historical trend rather than continuing it.

The gap in the underlying numbers is stark. Wolves have averaged 53.4% possession and 16 shots a game over their last five matches, against Sheffield Utd's 40.8% and 8.67. Wolves' expected goals for, 1.93 a game, comfortably outstrips Sheffield Utd's 1.14, while Sheffield Utd's expected goals against, 1.42, is the highest figure on either side of the ledger. Add in Sheffield Utd conceding 7.17 corners a game to Wolves' 5.4 won, and the volume of Wolves possession and territory looks set to translate into chances all afternoon.

Kick-off is at 12:00 BST on Sunday. The fixture is shown on Sky Sports where selected, with Sky Sports+ carrying a stream for subscribers. Fans without access should keep an eye on our live blog for updates through the game.

The value here sits in goals rather than the result. Wolves have not kept a clean sheet all season and Sheffield Utd have conceded in each of their last two home league games, so both teams to score at 4/7 does the heavy lifting. Backing the away win alongside it stacks the odds in favour of Wolves' superior underlying numbers.