Sheffield United broke the Championship record for the biggest ever play-off victory as they hammered Bristol City 6-0 on aggregate to reach the final.
Goals from Kieffer Moore, Gustavo Hamer and Callum O’Hare saw them enjoy a 3-0 win in the second leg on Monday night, adding to the comprehensive victory by the same scoreline at Ashton Gate.
They face Sunderland or Coventry in the final at Wembley, with the Black Cats leading that tie 2-1 heading into Tuesday night’s second leg live on Sky Sports.
How the second leg goals went in
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Kieffer Moore puts Sheffield United 4-0 up on aggregate in the play-off semi-final against Bristol City after heading in from a corner
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Gustavo Hamer’s deflected strike from the edge of the area makes it 5-0 on aggregate to Sheffield United against Bristol City in the Championship play-off semi-final
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Callum O’Hare fires home late on to give Sheffield United a 6-goal lead on aggregate against Bristol City
Unwanted history for Bristol City
Four teams had previously won by a five-goal margin in the second-tier play-offs, Sheffield United became the first side to secure a victory over two legs by six goals.
Sheffield United get the job done
In truth, the damage was done in the first leg. Bristol City were facing an uphill battle in this tie anyway, but then came the red card for Rob Dickie, and the resulting 3-0 win for Sheffield United.
Even taking into account some of the miracles we’ve seen in play-offs past, including just a few miles down the road at Hillsborough in 2023, this was always going to be a near impossible ask for Liam Manning and his side.
On 41 minutes it was tie completely over. A corner was swung in by Harrison Burrows and met by Moore, who headed in from close range.
Shortly after half-time, the lead on the night was doubled. A corner worked out to Hamer on the edge of the box, his strike taking a heavy deflection off Ross McCrorie and looping past Max O’Leary.
Wilder: If I was a player I’d be having a beer tonight!
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Chris Wilder gave his reaction to Sheffield Utd reaching the play-off final and said he asked his players to look after themselves ahead of Wembley and joked that he would probably have a beer after the victory if he was a player
Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder on Sky Sports Football:
“I just spoke to the players and said: ‘look after yourselves, look after each other’. Then I thought, would I have a beer tonight if I was a player? 100 per cent! You’ve got to enjoy nights like this.
“It’s been an incredibly challenging season for us, and to have a night like this at home in front of our spectators gives the boys the boost and the recognition they really deserve.
“You know what football’s like, one moment can all of a sudden change the complete environment and atmosphere. To get through that first 20-25 minutes was key and then we just found a little bit of rhythm, connected with a few passes then, on transition we had a few opportunities, but to get the first goal was huge for us tonight and just settled everybody down.
“We’ve done OK over these last two games, so we’ve just got to replicate the situations we were put in. It’s a one-off and it will bring the noise, excitement and everything a Wembley final brings.
“But we have to get the balance right, we can’t be too emotional about the game and that’s going to be the biggest task for the players because they are bound to be excited – and rightly so. Everybody tells me it’s the best way to be promoted, but we’ve still got work to do.”
Robinson: Defensive resolve heading into final is massive
Sheffield United’s Jack Robinson on Sky Sports Football:
“We put in a really good performance again tonight. We knew it would be a tough game, but we knew as long as we turned up, we’d get the win and make it comfortable.
“The last thing you want to do is give them an early goal and let them get back in the game. We nullified them all game and I thought the lads were really, really good tonight, really solid defensively and clinical in the box.
“Going into the final with two clean sheets, that’s exactly what you want. I’m really proud of the lads.”
Pundits: Sheff Utd have bounced back brilliantly from setbacks
Former Sheffield United midfielder Michael Brown on Sky Sports Football:
“This team just keeps coming. They had the set-back at the end of the season, with one week of results and performances that didn’t go their way, but Chris Wilder has had a bit of time, got them back to winning ways. He’s got a wonderful squad and really put them in a fantastic position.
“It’s not going to be easy. They are within touching distance, but they have got to prep and plan right. Enjoy tonight, but not too much!”
Former Sheffield United defender Chris Basham on Sky Sports Football:
“Wilder’s got a great bunch of lads in the squad. They don’t know the deep, deep history of the club like the manager does, they just want to go out and win football matches and that plays into their favour.
“He refreshed the group, a lot of my good team-mates left the group, but they are all desperate to do one big thing and that’s to play in the elite in the Premier League.”
Manning: We’re proud of what we’ve achieved
Bristol City boss Liam Manning on Sky Sports Football:
“We’re really proud to achieve finishing top six and then just how we went about it tonight. We could come back here, sit off and let them have it, but especially early on in the first 20 minutes, I thought we came out and we tried to be us.
“We had a go. I thought we got into some really good areas, threatened to be dangerous without having enough quality at the end of it, but up until the goal, I thought we had a right go.
“Even second half, the lads didn’t stop trying. When you’re coming into the tie, you know how difficult it is, there’s the potential and the danger of that, but I think, everybody saw the behaviours, what the lads were about.
“It’s been terrific for the club. The excitement it’s created, the buzz and we have to try and build on that. Now we have to go away, reflect, analyse in the summer and see where things are at.”