# 2021–22 Sheffield United F.C. season

The 2021–22 season was Sheffield United's first season back in the Championship since the 2018–19 season following relegation last season and was the 133rd year in their history. This season, the club participated in the Championship, FA Cup and EFL Cup. The season covered the period from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022.
During pre-season, Slaviša Jokanović was appointed as manager on a three-year deal, however was sacked on 25 November 2021 after a poor start to the season. Paul Heckingbottom was appointed, and took the team from lower mid table into the playoffs by May. The season was ended in heartbreak, however, after Morgan Gibbs-White missed the deciding penalty in a shootout defeat to Nottingham Forest.

## Squad statistics
### Appearances and goals

Updated 9 April 2022
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Championship | Championship | FA Cup | FA Cup | EFL Cup | EFL Cup | Championship Play-offs | Championship Play-offs |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||||||
| 1 | GK | WAL | Adam Davies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | GK | ENG | Wes Foderingham | 36 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 31 | GK | ENG | Jake Eastwood | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||||||||
| 2 | DF | GRE | George Baldock | 27 | 1 | 24+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | IRL | Enda Stevens | 24 | 2 | 21+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Jack O'Connell | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | ENG | Chris Basham | 34 | 0 | 25+4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 12 | DF | IRL | John Egan | 48 | 2 | 46 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 19 | DF | ENG | Jack Robinson | 32 | 3 | 26+1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 20 | DF | ENG | Jayden Bogle | 22 | 3 | 16+2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | ENG | Ben Davies | 22 | 1 | 21+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | DF | CRO | Filip Uremović | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | DF | ENG | Charlie Goode | 2 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | WAL | Rhys Norrington-Davies | 26 | 0 | 20+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 34 | DF | ENG | Kyron Gordon | 8 | 0 | 4+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | DF | POL | Kacper Łopata | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||||||
| 4 | MF | SCO | John Fleck | 39 | 2 | 31+4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 8 | MF | NOR | Sander Berge | 34 | 6 | 22+9 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 16 | MF | NIR | Oliver Norwood | 49 | 1 | 42+2 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 23 | MF | ENG | Ben Osborn | 39 | 3 | 21+13 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 24 | MF | IRL | Conor Hourihane | 31 | 1 | 15+14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 27 | MF | ENG | Morgan Gibbs-White | 37 | 12 | 33+2 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 29 | MF | SEN | Iliman Ndiaye | 35 | 7 | 23+7 | 7 | 0+1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Forwards ||||||||||||||
| 7 | FW | ENG | Rhian Brewster | 16 | 4 | 10+4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | SCO | Oli McBurnie | 30 | 1 | 9+19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | FW | ENG | Billy Sharp | 42 | 15 | 30+9 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 1+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | FW | IRL | David McGoldrick | 21 | 2 | 10+9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | MF | DEN | William Osula | 5 | 0 | 0+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | FW | ENG | Daniel Jebbison | 11 | 0 | 1+7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| Player(s) out on loan: ||||||||||||||
| 13 | DF | ENG | Max Lowe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | GK | NED | Michael Verrips | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | MF | ENG | Zak Brunt | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | SCO | Oliver Burke | 6 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | FRA | Lys Mousset | 7 | 3 | 5+2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | MF | ENG | Luke Freeman | 8 | 1 | 1+3 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | DF | ENG | Femi Seriki | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players who left the club: ||||||||||||||
| 1 | GK | ENG | Aaron Ramsdale | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | GK | SWE | Robin Olsen | 11 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | FW | ENG | Tyler Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | MF | ENG | Regan Slater | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | MF | ALG | Adlène Guedioura | 2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goals

    As of 29 April 2022
| Rank | No. | Nat. | Po. | Name | Championship | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Championship Play-offs | Total |
| 1 | 10 | | CF | Billy Sharp | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 15 |
| 2 | 27 | | MF | Morgan Gibbs-White | 11 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| 3 | 29 | | MF | Iliman Ndiaye | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 4 | 8 | | MF | Sander Berge | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 5 | 7 | | CF | Rhian Brewster | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 6 | 11 | | CF | Lys Mousset | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | 23 | | MF | Ben Osborn | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | 20 | | DF | Jayden Bogle | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | 19 | | DF | Jack Robinson | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 7 | 12 | | DF | John Egan | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 | 17 | | CF | David McGoldrick | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 | 3 | | DF | Enda Stevens | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 7 | 4 | | MF | John Fleck | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | 2 | | DF | George Baldock | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | 16 | | MF | Oliver Norwood | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | 24 | | MF | Conor Hourihane | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | 22 | | DF | Ben Davies | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | 15 | | MF | Luke Freeman | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | 9 | | CF | Oli McBurnie | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Own goals | Own goals | Own goals | Own goals | Own goals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | Total | Total | Total | Total | 63 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 71 |

## Transfers
### Transfers in

| Date | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| 15 July 2021 | MF | Sydie Peck | Arsenal | Free transfer |
| 8 September 2021 | MF | Joe Starbuck | Grimsby Town | Undisclosed |
| 13 September 2021 | CM | Adlène Guedioura | Al-Gharafa | Free transfer |
| 21 January 2022 | DF | Connor Barratt | Birmingham City | Undisclosed |
| 25 January 2022 | GK | Adam Davies | Stoke City | £250,000 |

### Loans in

| Date from | Position | Name | From | Date until |
| 16 August 2021 | CB | Ben Davies | Liverpool | End of season |
| 30 August 2021 | CM | Conor Hourihane | Aston Villa | End of season |
| 31 August 2021 | CM | Morgan Gibbs-White | Wolverhampton Wanderers | End of season |
| 31 August 2021 | GK | Robin Olsen | Roma | 18 January 2022 |
| 31 January 2022 | CB | Charlie Goode | Brentford | End of season |
| 24 March 2022 | CB | Filip Uremović | Rubin Kazan | Free transfer |
* ↑ On 18 January, Olsen was recalled by parent club Roma.

### Loans out

| Date from | Position | Name | To | Date until |
| 13 July 2021 | LB | Harry Boyes | Solihull Moors | 3 January 2022 |
| 3 August 2021 | CM | George Broadbent | Rochdale | 1 January 2022 |
| 12 August 2021 | RB | Femi Seriki | Beerschot | End of season |
| 13 August 2021 | GK | Jordan Amissah | Guiseley | September 2021 |
| 13 August 2021 | MF | Harrison Neal | Kettering Town | September 2021 |
| 21 August 2021 | GK | Marcus Dewhurst | Solihull Moors | mid-September 2021 |
| 27 August 2021 | LB | Max Lowe | Nottingham Forest | End of season |
| 31 August 2021 | CF | Daniel Jebbison | Burton Albion | 31 January 2022 |
| 7 September 2021 | GK | Jake Eastwood | Portsmouth | 14 September 2021 |
| 28 October 2021 | CM | Zak Brunt | Southend United | January 2022 |
| 28 October 2021 | CB | Kacper Łopata | Southend United | End of season |
| 4 January 2022 | CM | Zak Brunt | Notts County | End of season |
| 4 January 2022 | MF | Harrison Neal | Southend United | End of season |
| 11 January 2022 | GK | Michael Verrips | Fortuna Sittard | End of season |
| 21 January 2022 | FW | Oliver Burke | Millwall | End of season |
| 31 January 2022 | CF | Lys Mousset | Salernitana | End of season |
| 31 January 2022 | MF | Luke Freeman | Millwall | End of season |
| 22 March 2022 | RB | Jean Belehouan | Farsley Celtic | End of season |
| 22 March 2022 | RB | Femi Seriki | Boston United | End of season |
| 30 April 2022 | GK | Jake Eastwood | Rochdale | 7 May 2022 |

### Transfers out

| Date | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| 30 June 2021 | GK | Josh Chapman | Rotherham United | Free transfer |
| 30 June 2021 | CB | Ashton Hall | Matlock Town | Released |
| 30 June 2021 | CB | Phil Jagielka | Derby County | Released |
| 30 June 2021 | CM | John Lundstram | Rangers | Released |
| 30 June 2021 | GK | Simon Moore | Coventry City | Released |
| 30 June 2021 | CM | Jack Rodwell | Western Sydney Wanderers | Released |
| 30 June 2021 | CB | Tommy Williams | Unattached | Released |
| 5 July 2021 | CF | Ryan Viggars | Charlton Athletic | Undisclosed |
| 24 July 2021 | CB | Kean Bryan | West Bromwich Albion | Released |
| 29 July 2021 | CB | Sam Graham | Rochdale | Free transfer |
| 20 August 2021 | GK | Aaron Ramsdale | Arsenal | Undisclosed |
| 27 August 2021 | CF | Tyler Smith | Hull City | Undisclosed |
| 27 January 2022 | DM | Regan Slater | Hull City | Undisclosed |

## Pre-season friendlies

The Blades confirmed they would play pre-season friendlies against Europa Point Doncaster Rovers and Norwich City as part of their preparations for the new campaign.

## Competitions
### Overview

| Competition | Starting round | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| Competition | Starting round | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % |
| Championship | Matchday 1 | 46 | 21 | 12 | 13 | 63 | 45 | +18 | 045.65 |
| FA Cup | Third round | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | −3 | 000.00 |
| EFL Cup | First Round | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 066.67 |
| Championship Play-Offs | Semi Final | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | +0 | 050.00 |
| Total | Total | 52 | 24 | 13 | 15 | 71 | 54 | +17 | 046.15 |
Last updated: 9 February 2022 Source: Soccerway

### Championship
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 2 | Bournemouth (P) | 46 | 25 | 13 | 8 | 74 | 39 | +35 | 88 | Promotion to the Premier League |
| 3 | Huddersfield Town | 46 | 23 | 13 | 10 | 64 | 47 | +17 | 82 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |
| 4 | Nottingham Forest (O, P) | 46 | 23 | 11 | 12 | 73 | 40 | +33 | 80 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |
| 5 | Sheffield United | 46 | 21 | 12 | 13 | 63 | 45 | +18 | 75 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |
| 6 | Luton Town | 46 | 21 | 12 | 13 | 63 | 55 | +8 | 75 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |
| 7 | Middlesbrough | 46 | 20 | 10 | 16 | 59 | 50 | +9 | 70 | |
| 8 | Blackburn Rovers | 46 | 19 | 12 | 15 | 59 | 50 | +9 | 69 | |

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: 29 April 2022. Source:

#### Results by matchday

| Matchday | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 |
| Ground | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | A | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | H | A | H | A | H |
| Result | L | D | L | L | D | W | D | W | W | L | L | W | L | W | L | D | L | D | W | W | W | W | L | D | W | W | W | W | D | D | W | W | L | D | W | L | D | W | L | W | D | L | D | W | W | W |
| Position | 22 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 18 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 17 | 16 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 11 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 |

#### Matches

Sheffield United's fixtures were announced on 24 June 2021.

#### Play-offs
### FA Cup

Sheff Utd were drawn away to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the third round.

### EFL Cup

Blades were drawn at home to Carlisle United in the first round Derby County in the second round and Southampton in the third round.