Sheffield United Boss Warns Team About Maintaining “Intensity” As He Discusses Barry’s Debut And AI Signings | OneFootball

Sheffield United maintained their perfect pre-season record with a convincing 4-1 win over Chesterfield, as Ruben Selles’ side produced another high-pressing attacking display.

It took just four minutes for the Blades to stamp their authority on the game, with Louie Barry making an immediate impact. The on loan Aston Villa winger’s first action in a United shirt was to dart into space down the left before delivering a sharp cut-back for Jefferson Caceres, who calmly slotted home to open the scoring.

Barry was involved again moments later, this time turning provider for Ehije Success Ukaki. The young winger drifted in off the right flank to meet Barry’s precise pass and finished with composure.

By the half-hour mark, the Blades were cruising. Gustavo Hamer whipped in a dangerous inswinging free-kick from the right, and captain Anel Ahmedhodzic rose highest to head past Zach Hemming for United’s third.

Chesterfield responded just before the break following a defensive lapse from United. Dilan Markanday intercepted a loose pass from Dovy Sasnauskas and was denied by goalkeeper Michael Cooper, but the rebound dropped kindly for Liam Bonis, who tapped into an empty net to give the hosts a brief lifeline at 3-1.

However, any hope of a comeback was quickly extinguished in the second half. Just seven minutes after the restart, substitute Callum O’Hare surged into the box and squared for Tom Cannon, who lashed his finish high into the net to restore the three-goal cushion.

Ruben Selles Eager For Sheffield United to Maintain Standards

Louie Barry and Ehije Success Ukaki celebrate the second goal of the game during Chesterfield vs Sheffield United pre-season game. (Image Credit: Sheffield United Football Club).

Manager Ruben Selles spoke to SUTV as he praised the team’s performance, particularly their fast start:

“We want to be a team that is aggressive, good in possession, vertical, and I think we saw a lot of that, especially in the first 30 minutes,” he said. “Then the pitch got a little bit dry and the end of the first half wasn’t exactly what we expected. But we started the second half on top again and got the fourth.”

Selles acknowledged that the game slowed in the final stages and reiterated his desire for sustained intensity over 90 minutes:

“Sometimes it’s not easy because of the circumstances of the game, the score, the environment but we wanted the team we had on the pitch for the last 20 minutes; the game got a little bit slower than I wanted. Our standard is to play with the intensity we played in the first 30 minutes.”

When asked about two goalscorers, Ukaki and Caceres, two players that were signed using United’s new recruitment model, Selles spoke about what role they could have this coming season:

“For the moment they are part of our squad playing minutes. They are dynamic, the kind of players we want. Where they’ll be at the end of the transfer window depends on their performances and where we are as a club.”

As for debutant Louie Barry, the Spaniard was pleased with his contribution. “We know what we have with Louie: a threat on the left-hand side with a lot of end product. He’s been working really hard in pre-season with Aston Villa, so it was ideal for him to play some minutes today. He’s not quite at the level of our boys in terms of how we do things yet, but he’ll catch up. I’m pleased he got through 60-65 minutes,” he said.

Sheffield United are gradually building to the new Championship campaign which kicks off in a couple of weeks. Not only have they won all four of their pre-season games, they’re set to add good quality depth to the squad, with hopes of announcing a new signing in the coming days.