Sheffield United left it very late yesterday but they recorded a third win in four league matches following a 1-0 win over Derby County.

The tide has turned for the Blades since the international break having not picked up a league win before that, with their only dropped points in September coming against Preston North End.

United's fixture list has been quite favourable though with wins coming against Peterborough, Hull City and now the Rams, who held on until Curtis Davies handled the ball in the area with just a few minutes of the match to spare.

Billy Sharp smashed home the resulting penalty to send Blades supporters home happy in what was a frustrating game in which they struggled to get past both Kelle Roos and his replacement in Ryan Allsop when he came on for the Dutchman who was sent off before the hour mark.

Following the match, Wayne Rooney commented on how he thinks the Blades will do this season and he believes they're all set for a promotion push.

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"They're a good team," Rooney said post-match, per YorkshireLive.

"Dropping down from the Premier League last season, they didn't have the best start to this season, but they have hit some good form in the last few weeks.

"I think they'll be up their challenging for play-offs or automatic promotion.

"They are a good team and our game plan was to try and frustrate them and pick up a 1-0 win."

The Verdict

For the squad on paper that Sheffield United have, they absolutely should be promotion contenders and many predicted that at the start of the season.

Their opening five fixtures though have caused some to change their minds on the Blades though, but their recent victories will be slightly more comforting to their own fans as they now know where the back of the net is.

It can be argued that since the international break they've not faced anyone who will pose a threat at the top end of the table at the end of the season - next Saturday's game against Bournemouth will be a true test of their capabilities.

But Rooney is in no doubt that United will be right up there at the business end of the season as Slavisa Jokanovic looks to chalk up another promotion to the Premier League on his CV.