Leeds United 2-0 Sheffield United: Struijk and Joseph lift hosts into second

Goals from Pascal Struijk and Mateo Joseph fired Leeds to a 2-0 derby win over Sheffield United, taking them above the Blades and into second in the Championship table.

Struijk met Joe Rothwell’s flat corner-kick delivery with a crashing strike that hit the roof of the net after 69 minutes, before Joseph came off the bench to seal the points with a close-range finish.

Chris Wilder’s visitors, who entered the game as the only unbeaten side in the Football League in 2024-25, had earlier defended resolutely to prevent Leeds from turning their dominance of possession into clear-cut chances.

Largie Ramazani went closest to the breakthrough in the first half as his low drive was repelled by Blades goalkeeper Michael Cooper, while Brenden Aaronson volleyed wide of the near post shortly before the break.

Sheffield United briefly improved after the restart as Joe Rodon’s block diverted Ollie Arblaster’s drive wide, but the Blades were caught out from a set-piece soon afterwards.

Struijk was not tracked as he raced onto Rothwell’s clever corner to blast home, just the fourth goal Sheffield United had conceded in league play this season and the first since August 24.

PASCAL FROM A CORNER! pic.twitter.com/ZVaYQKbyqA

— Leeds United (@LUFC) October 18, 2024

With Sheffield United throwing men forward, Leeds made certain of the result in the 90th minute, Joseph taking in Joel Piroe’s pass before sliding his finish into the bottom-left corner.

Data Debrief: Leeds maintain derby hoodoo

Leeds’ victory extended their unbeaten streak in Yorkshire derbies to 16 league matches (12 wins, four draws), with their last such defeat coming against Sheffield Wednesday in the second tier in January 2020.

It is their longest ever such run against Yorkshire rivals, while they have also recorded three straight league victories over the Blades, who they beat twice in the Premier League in 2020-21 (1-0 away, 2-1 home).