Get to know the Championship playoff finalists

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Some of you don’t get a chance to follow the Championship for most of the season and parachute in for the playoff final. That’s this Saturday between Sheffield United and Sunderland, so let’s get to know them.

Between these teams’ styles of play and the fact that it’s a final, I don’t expect a particularly wide-open game with lots of chances. These are not sensational attacking sides, and they’re remarkably similar too. Sunderland’s a bit better on the counter and Sheffield United are a bit more patient, but neither takes a lot of risk going forward.

The result is a pair of very solid defenses, in very traditional defensive fashion. PPDA is low, they don’t care if opponents have a lot of the ball as long as it’s not in dangerous areas, and they don’t press too aggressively. We really might end up watching a staring contest here.

As an aside, it’s bonkers that these teams concede so little xG, and yet they conceded 20 and 28 more goals, respectably, than Burnley did this year.

Given the above, you may be unsurprised to learn that very few of the attacking players on either team have particularly sexy looking radars. Jobe Bellingham, for instance, is currently expected to follow in his brother’s footsteps and make a move to Borussia Dortmund this summer. His data could not possibly look less like his brother’s.

On the other side, the two-headed right wing monster of Andre Brooks and Jesuran Rak-Sakyi looks intriguing. Rak-Sakyi has battled some injuries recently, so Brooks has been getting more of the minutes over the last couple months. But they’re both very productive attackers, especially relative to their team, and you might see both make an impact on Saturday.

Gustavo Hamer has also had a very productive season for the Blades on the opposite wing, while Enzo Le Fee has some outstanding playmaking highlights for Sunderland, even if the team’s style doesn’t lead to his data looking great. Both teams do the same weird thing with their left winger, where Hamer and Le Fee are basically passing midfielders who start on the left flank instead of centrally, but do Midfielder Stuff.

Sunderland have an obligation to buy Le Fee for £19m from Roma if they win the game, but he’ll be on his way back to Rome if they don’t.

I’m not afraid to make myself look silly with a prediction, but I genuinely do not have one. While Sheffield United finished the season with 14 more points and a +13 better goal differential than Sunderland this season, these look like extremely evenly matched teams. My only prediction is a very cagey and low-scoring affair. —KM

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Games we’re watching

Como vs. Inter and Napoli vs. Cagliari — The Serie A title deciders happen simultaneously on Friday evening, apart from the rest of the final day festivities.

Arsenal vs. Barcelona women — I’m expecting the Blaugrana to lay a comprehensive ass whooping on the Gunners in the Champions League final, but I wasn’t expecting Arsenal to get past Lyon either.

Arminia Bielefeld vs. VfB Stuttgart — Maybe the best cupset of all time if it happens. 3. Liga champions Bielefeld have made an unbelievable run to the DFB-Pokal final, and Stuttgart are a fitting final boss.

Nottingham Forest vs. Chelsea — I’ll have the whiparound show with all the games on a 2nd screen obviously, but this is the main event. A decisive result probably puts the winner in Champions League. A draw puts both in trouble. Spicy!

Stuff we’re reading

Ashwin Raman at Scouted takes a look at Emanuel Emegha, Strasbourg’s talented striker who’s likely to be linked to several rich clubs this summer.

Max Radwan at The Cutback has a preview of the UEFA Women’s Champions League final between Arsenal and Barcelona.

Kieron O’Connor at Swiss Ramble looks back on the finances behind 20 years of Glazers ownership at Manchester United.

Grace Robertson at Grace On Football wonders how Xabi Alonso might re-shape Real Madrid.

Mustapha Hassan at Total Football Analysis speculates about how Carlo Ancelotti will use the Brazil squad.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, we’d appreciate it if you would forward it to a friend. If you’re that friend, welcome! You can subscribe to The Transfer Flow here. We also have a podcast where we go in depth on transfer news and rumours every week. We’re on YouTube here, and you can subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify by searching for “The Transfer Flow Podcast.”