Roberto De Zerbi admitted he does not like “80 per cent of Premier League referees” after 10-man Brighton were held to a 1-1 draw with Sheffield United.

Simon Adingra had put the Seagulls ahead with a brilliant solo run but the game changed on Mahmoud Dahoud’s red card in the 69th minute.

Midfielder Dahoud stamped on Ben Osborn’s Achilles, with Adam Webster putting through his own goal moments later to take the Blades off the bottom of the table for the first time since September 23.

De Zerbi, who was also booked for his touchline antics, did not disagree with the red card shown by John Brooks but said: “I am honest and clear… I don’t like 80 per cent of English referees.

“That isn’t a new opinion. I don’t like them. I don’t like their behaviour on the pitch.

“England is the only country where when there is VAR, you are not sure that the decision is right. In other countries, you have to be sure 100 per cent that the decision taken is right. In England, no, and I am not able to understand.”

De Zerbi is now on his longest run without a league win as Brighton manager, with his side six matches without taking three points.

“We are spending time in an unlucky period,” said the Italian. “I think we have lost four points; two against Fulham and two today.

“After the red card, I didn’t like the team.

“There wasn’t a game until the red card. There was only one team on the pitch. Brighton could have won the game two or three nil, but after the red card the game changed.

“After the red card we can say other things but the situation with one player less, we lost order and our style.”

Adingra went on a mazy run before finishing after a give-and-go with Facundo Buonanotte in the fifth minute. But after the red card, Jayden Bogle’s powerful cross was diverted into his own goal by Webster.

It was the first time United had strung two games without defeat together in the top flight since July 2020 – not that Paul Heckingbottom is worried after a first away point of the season and getting off the bottom.

He said: “It is irrelevant – maybe getting off the bottom is important because people keep mentioning it but I’m not bothered. Not yet.

“What is pleasing is how we’ve played against a good team.

“It is always about the points. I can give lots of reasons why we haven’t picked up more points this season: the way we started the season, final moments in games where we could and should have.

“But until you get them they are just excuses. It is about the points and we want to keep picking up the points.

“There have been moments in every game but in the last two games it has been us being the stronger team at the end and that is what I want to see. It gives us a huge lift.”

Adam Webster’s own goal condemned Roberto De Zerbi to his worst league run with Brighton as Sheffield United escaped the bottom of the table with a 1-1 draw against 10-man Albion.

Simon Adingra had put the Seagulls ahead with a brilliant solo run but Mahmoud Dahoud’s red card saw momentum shift before Webster slid into his own goal.

Brighton, who beat European giants Ajax on Thursday, are now winless in the Premier League in six matches, the longest boss De Zerbi has gone without a victory since arriving on the south coast last year.

The Blades almost took an unlikely second-minute lead when Gustavo Hamer intercepted Jan Paul van Hecke’s pass across his own box but his header travelled narrowly wide.

Four minutes later, Dahoud’s through ball released Ansu Fati who excitingly beat two defenders but his shot lacked power and was easily stopped by Wes Foderingham.

The warning was not heeded as two minutes later Adingra picked up the ball 35 yards from goal on the left touchline. He shrugged off two tackles and played a one-two with Facundo Buonanotte before slotting past Foderingham.

It was the Ivorian’s fourth goal of the season and the 28th straight league game the Seagulls have scored – the Blades winless in the last 20 Premier League matches they had shipped first.

Brighton manager De Zerbi, who had given a call to action to supporters before the match, celebrated by jumping into the crowd in delight.

Fati – making his first league start since arriving on loan from Barcelona – again found a gap down the middle to expose but his toe-poke was simple for Foderingham to deal with, before Buonanotte and Billy Gilmour went close.

United showed a threat at the end of the first half but George Baldock’s lashed shot was the closest they came to scoring.

Joao Pedro shot over almost immediately after coming on at the break, Van Hecke nodded a corner into the ground and over, Kaoru Mitoma’s raid to the byline saw his near-post shot blocked and Dahoud’s effort from range was battered behind.

But in the 69th minute, the character of the game changed when Dahoud was dismissed for stamping on Ben Osborn’s Achilles. Referee John Brooks has now given four red cards this season, more than any of his colleague – not that there was any controversy with this decision.

Four minutes later and United were level. Jayden Bogle smashed a ball across the face of goal and Webster put through his own goal, with Cameron Archer waiting behind for a tap-in.

All of Brighton’s last 16 matches have seen both teams scoring – equalling Everton’s Premier League record – with the 12 since the start of the campaign last achieved in the top flight by Liverpool in the 1966-67 season.

Bogle dragged an effort narrowly wide and Luke Thomas blazed over but the Blades could not find a second late winner in a row to follow their stoppage-time success against Wolves.

Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom joked he would be in prison if his side had not been awarded a last-gasp penalty which helped them finally break their Premier League duck with a 2-1 victory over Wolves.

The Blades won at the 11th attempt when Oliver Norwood smashed home from 12 yards in the 10th minute of time added on after Fabio Silva fouled George Baldock, a decision which Wolves boss Gary O’Neil described as “absolutely crazy”.

It provided a moment of relief for the hosts after Cameron Archer’s excellent opener had been cancelled out by Jean-Ricner Bellegarde’s deflected effort in the 89th minute as their campaign finally kickstarted.

Heckingbottom said: “I don’t think you’d have seen me if we hadn’t been given that penalty, I might be in prison somewhere.

“I have not seen it but the people who have seen have said because there was no contact there was no way it was going to be overturned. It’s one of those where the ref makes the call and there is not enough to overturn the decision.

“The dramatic nature of it makes victory feel even sweeter but it would have been harsh had we not won, especially after the way we performed in the second half.

“It’s a tough, tough league and there are going to be games where we are not in them, where the opposition take it away from us.

“It’s not a walk in the park this league but I thought we were dominant in the second half and for me deserved the win.

“We managed the game really well, it’s a big win, a big three points. A good performance.”

It was the second week in a row where Wolves felt they were on the wrong end of a penalty decision after a controversial incident in last weekend’s draw with Newcastle.

Boss O’Neil watched the incident again after the match with referee Rob Jones, who stood by his decision.

“It is not a penalty, hardly any contact. It is a tough one to discuss, it is another terrible decision,” O’Neil moaned.

“I don’t understand why he feels the need to give it, pause, take your time, it’s not about you. If you have made a clear and obvious error there, VAR will tell you after.

“I’ve been in with him, and he still thinks it’s a penalty, he still says there is contact. The only contact I can see is maybe Fabio’s shinpad with Baldock’s calf, like a graze.

“Baldock is already on his way down. I am sitting there watching it with him and he still says it is a penalty which tells me we are in a pretty bad spot because that is never, ever a penalty.

“If you give a foul for that contact there would be one million fouls in the 90 minutes. Because of the wording we use VAR can’t intervene because it is not deemed clear and obvious. Craziness.

“I don’t expect anything, we didn’t get an apology last week and apologies don’t help me. We are six points down maybe from refereeing decisions.

“I have said a million times we need to be better so decision’s don’t affect us as much but the facts are they have had a big impact on our points total.

“A big impact on where we are in the league, the feel of the place, has an impact on how well I am deemed to have done as a new manager arriving at Wolves, 12 points is a big difference to 18.

“To sit and have a conversation with the referee and him still think that is a penalty is absolutely crazy. I am worried about it at the minute, they are in a bad spot and it seems to be going against us.”

Oliver Norwood’s penalty with the last kick of the game finally gave Sheffield United their first win of the Premier League season as they beat Wolves 2-1 at Bramall Lane.

The skipper smashed home from 12 yards after Fabio Silva fouled George Baldock in the seventh minute of time added on as the Blades broke their duck at the 11th attempt.

It had looked like they would have to settle for a point as Jean-Ricner Bellegarde’s 89th-minute strike had cancelled out Cameron Archer’s impressive opener.

But this was just the tonic Paul Heckingbottom needed after a harrowing start to the campaign on their return to the top tier and they are now just two points off safety after Burnley and Bournemouth lost again.

There was more penalty woe for Wolves, following on from last week’s controversy against Newcastle, but their five-match unbeaten streak came to an end.

The sodden conditions made for a chaotic opening, where Wolves looked the most likely as they regularly found space down their right-hand side.

Matheus Cunha burst forward in the opening five minutes but his dangerous cross avoided everyone while Nelson Semedo blasted over after he made headway.

Hee-Chan Hwang looked dangerous and forced Wes Foderingham into a flying save before the South Korean was involved in the best opening of the first half in the 32nd minute.

He wriggled clear in the box and looked primed to score but skewed his shot straight into the path of Rayan Ait-Nouri, who could not turn the ball goalwards.

Sheffield United improved immeasurably after the break and boxed Wolves in for the first 20 minutes.

Archer sent an effort just over from 20 yards while James McAtee failed to work Jose Sa from a free-kick in a dangerous area.

Just as it looked as if Wolves had weathered the storm, the Blades went ahead in the 72nd minute with a moment of quality.

There was some fortune in how it came about as a clearance from Cunha hit McAtee and sent Archer clear but from then on it was all about the former Aston Villa striker.

As it looked like he might be caught by the chasing Wolves defenders, Archer unleased a 25-yard shot that arrowed in off the underside of the crossbar.

But the Blades appeared to suffer more disappointment in the 89th minute when Bellegarde’s effort deflected off Baldock and over Foderingham, who got a hand to it.

There was late drama as Silva went through the back of Baldock deep into time added on and after the decision by referee Rob Jones survived a vigorous VAR check, Norwood smashed the spot-kick in off the crossbar to send Bramall Lane into raptures.

Eddie Nketiah dedicated his first Premier League hat-trick to his recently deceased aunt after his treble sank Sheffield United.

The newly-capped England striker put the Blades to the sword, scoring the opening three goals before a Fabio Vieira penalty and a first Arsenal strike for Takehiro Tomiyasu wrapped up a convincing 5-0 win.

The result takes the Gunners two points off the top of the table, with Mikel Arteta’s side unbeaten in their first 10 league games of the campaign.

Nketiah, who has started eight of those matches, had not scored since August but topped a special day by finishing the game wearing the captain’s armband.

“To do it at Emirates Stadium, in the Premier League, in front of my family and friends is an amazing feeling,” the 24-year-old said of his hat-trick.

“I lost my aunt not too long ago and I just want to dedicate that to her and her family.

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve dreamt of this moment – to get three goals in a Premier League match.

“I’m a childhood supporter of the club, so to do it in front of the fans, my friends, my family and my teammates is an amazing feeling. It’s a day I’ll remember forever.”

There could another goal for Nketiah after he picked the ball up to take a late penalty, given after a lengthy VAR check for a foul on substitute Vieira.

Instead, the Portugal midfielder asked to take the spot-kick himself to mark a special moment in his life.

“I was going to take it – I wanted to take it,” explained Nketiah.

“I always want to get more goals. Fabio came to me and he wanted to take it. He won the penalty as well. He’s expecting a little one and it was a really good moment for him to get on the scoresheet and dedicate it.

“I’m a team player – I’d scored a hat-trick and I could allow other players to get in on the act. He took the penalty and scored, so we’re happy.”

Captain Oliver Norwood conceded the penalty as Sheffield United slumped to another defeat that leaves them bottom of the table and with just one point from 10 games.

He was bullish when asked about the performance in north London.

“It is very disappointing,” he said.

“We go in at half-time 1-0 down. Second half it’s difficult to really come and speak and say too much other than it’s not acceptable to keep losing the way that we are.

“It is easy to stand and say ‘we stick together through the hard times’, it’s easy to say that, but now we’ve got to show it.

“We’ve got to really dig in, have a look in the mirror at ourselves individually, because it’s not good enough.”

Mikel Arteta hailed “top-level” Eddie Nketiah after the England striker hit a first Premier League hat-trick in a convincing 5-0 win over bottom club Sheffield United.

Nketiah scored the first three goals as the Gunners ran out comfortable victors, with Fabio Vieira’s penalty and Takehiro Tomiyasu’s first goal for the club completing the rout.

The victory took Arsenal up to second place, two points behind leaders and north London rivals Tottenham as Arteta’s men remain unbeaten after 10 league games.

With Gabriel Jesus facing a few weeks out with a hamstring issue, Nketiah has once again been tasked with filling his boots at centre-forward.

His touch and finish for the opening goal proved he can do the job as the England international set the Gunners on their way to a victory over the rock bottom Blades.

He doubled the lead after half-time and rifled home a memorable third – before ending the game with the captain’s armband.

“For me, he’s top-level,” Arteta said after the win.

“He has started eight out of the 10 Premier League games. So that tells you how much we trust him, how much I trust him and and the importance that he has in the team.

“I’m really happy for him, an academy player to experience in the Premier League a hat-trick. He needs to enjoy the moment. He fully deserves it and hopefully there are many more to come.

“He’s got an eye for goal. You look at the stats from his last 10 years. What he’s done is remarkable and he needs minutes, opportunities and service and if he gets that, Eddie is going to score goals, that’s for sure.”

Arsenal are yet to suffer a league defeat this season but Arteta revealed he gave his players an “alert” in training this week after some tough fixtures either side of the October international break.

“They took the game in a really serious way because I gave them on Thursday a big alert because of the context and the difference in the game that we have to play today with the previous Man City,
Chelsea and Sevilla games and I’m really happy how they approached it.

“Obviously they come from the national team, so we beat City, we come from national team, we have to go to Stamford Bridge and we did what we did in Stamford Bridge.

“Then you have to go to Seville and that’s a really really stressful week with what they were experiencing in the last few weeks as well.”

Sheffield United remain bottom and with just one point from their opening nine games.

Paul Heckingbottom’s side are also struggling with injuries – but he was not ready to use that as an excuse for a bad day at the office.

“Arsenal had a lot of the ball first half but Wes (Foderingham) had one save to make,” he said.

“Second half, the goals were really poor that we conceded and probably a reflection of how I thought the game was – they outfought us as well as outplayed us in the first half and that is what good teams can do.

“We are down to the bare bones and missing some big personalities and physicality.”

Eddie Nketiah returned to the Arsenal starting line-up with style as the England forward hit a first Premier League hat-trick in a 5-0 win over bottom club Sheffield United.

Mikel Arteta made five changes for the visit of the Blades and it was Nketiah – in for the injured Gabriel Jesus – who proved the difference and ended a memorable afternoon wearing the captain’s armband.

Substitutes Fabio Vieira and Takehiro Tomiyasu wrapped up the points late on with a penalty and a close-range finish respectively on an afternoon where Arsenal’s fringe players took centre-stage.

Martin Odegaard dropped to the bench in the most eye-catching of Arteta’s alterations, which also saw Emile Smith Rowe make his first league start since May 2022.

The victory took Arsenal up to second place, two points behind leaders and north London rivals Tottenham as Arteta’s men remained unbeaten after 10 league games.

For the Blades, this was a galling afternoon where – once their resolute defence was breached for the first goal just before the half-hour mark – the writing was on the wall.

The travelling fans sang the name of under pressure manager Paul Heckingbottom but they have still yet to see their team win on their return to the top-flight, with just one point on the board.

With Jesus facing a few weeks out with a hamstring issue, Nketiah has once again been tasked with filling his boots as Arsenal’s go-to centre-forward.

His touch and finish for the opening goal proved he can do the job as the England international set the Gunners on their way to a comfortable victory over the rock bottom Blades.

Wes Foderingham would have expected to be busier in the opening half but he was on hand to push a rasping Gabriel Martinelli strike wide of the post five minutes before the break.

The second goal arrived five minutes after the interval, Foderingham this time flapping at a Bukayo Saka corner with the ball dropping to Nketiah, who arrowed a shot into the top corner. A VAR check for a potential foul on the United goalkeeper failed to save the visitors.

Nketiah, who made his England debut of the bench in 1-0 friendly win over Australia earlier this month, saved the best for last.

Collecting a pass from Smith Rowe, the 24-year-old rifled home from 20 yards to complete his hat-trick.

Saka, captain in the absence of Odegaard and Jesus, was replaced soon after and – to cheers from the home supporters – gave the armband to Nketiah.

Nketiah initially picked up the ball to take a late penalty awarded after a lengthy VAR check by referee Tim Robinson after Vieira had been caught by Oliver Norwood.

But instead Vieira dusted himself down to send Foderingham the wrong way and further extend the lead.

Tomiyasu rounded off the scoring deep into added time after Mohamed Elneny’s flick on from a near-post corner was deflected into the path of the Japan defender.

Erik ten Hag admitted Manchester United’s first-half performance in their 2-1 win at Sheffield United was not a fitting way to remember Sir Bobby Charlton.

United are mourning one of their greatest ever players following Charlton’s death aged 86 on Saturday morning and goals from Scott McTominay and Diogo Dalot ensured they remembered him with victory.

But Ten Hag’s side could not be much further away from the one that Charlton famously led to European Cup glory in 1968 as they were lacklustre against a team who have picked up just one point this season.

Defender Dalot was the unlikely hero as he saved their blushes with a 20-yard curler 13 minutes from time after Oli McBurnie’s first-half penalty had cancelled out McTominay’s opener.

Ten Hag said: “We are happy we did that, we have to pay attention and do it in a good way and first half I think it wasn’t the standard for Sir Bobby Charlton and the second half was a bit better.

“But of course the news arrived and we are very sad and our thoughts are with his family and especially his wife Lady Norma, his children and his grandchildren.

“I heard some players got some inspiration from it and they wanted a win to mark it. It was an extra motivation, absolutely.

“But the first half was not a good game. We can talk long or we can talk short, it was a poor game from our side and you see it often after internationals, especially us with so many changes, the routines are not there. In the first half we allowed them to make it their game.

“We were too direct, no good organisation, second half we made some changes and you saw we got better, we were more composed and kept the ball.

“We controlled the game and created the chances and then finally we deserved the win and it was a beautiful goal.”

Blades boss Paul Heckingbottom began his playing career at Old Trafford as a teenager and remembers Charlton fondly.

“He was there the day I signed as a 14-year-old,” he said. “He is a man that represented everything that United wanted to be, certainly in terms of developing youth players and getting youth players into the first team.

“It is not only Manchester United that will miss him, English football and I think he was a football icon across the world as well, so there will be a lot of people remembering him, stories they have heard, games they have seen.”

The Blades may feel they deserved something out of the game, especially on the back of a lively first-half performance, but they slipped to an eighth defeat from nine games and a long winter looks on the cards.

But Heckingbottom took the positives.

“In most games we have shown more than enough that we can compete,” he added. “Lots of things that please me in that.

“We have suffered horrendously with injuries in the last 10 days, captain, vice-captain and a couple of other players. We are not going to sulk about it, it is an opportunity for others.

“We looked more of a threat tonight. There are lots of things tonight that we have to build on. It was close. What we had today was more of an all-round threat.”

Manchester United paid tribute to Sir Bobby Charlton with a 2-1 Premier League victory at Sheffield United.

United are mourning one of their greatest ever players following Charlton’s death aged 86 on Saturday morning and goals from Scott McTominay and Diogo Dalot ensured they remembered him with victory.

But Erik ten Hag’s side could not be much further away from the one that Charlton famously led to European Cup glory in 1968 as they were lacklustre against a team who have picked up just one point this season.

Defender Dalot was the unlikely hero as he saved their blushes with a 20-yard curler 13 minutes from time after Oli McBurnie’s first-half penalty had cancelled out McTominay’s opener.

It was not a vintage performance, certainly not one fitting of Charlton, but United did at least register back-to-back league victories for the first time this season and Ten Hag will hope this can be a springboard.

The Blades may feel they deserved something out of the game, especially on the back of a lively first-half performance, but they slipped to an eighth defeat from nine games and a long winter looks on the cards.

United captain Bruno Fernandes laid a wreath on the centre circle before kick-off and there was a minute’s applause for the World Cup winner, while the away end gave a rousing rendition of ‘There’s only one Bobby Charlton’.

As emotional as it was for United, they still had a job to do and they had to weather an early storm from the hosts.

The Blades started well and should have led inside the opening three minutes as Gus Hamer’s shot deflected into the path of McBurnie, but with time and space 14 yards out he shot straight at Andre Onana, who gratefully clung on.

The visitors were up against it and Ten Hag used an injury break to gather his players and bark instructions.

It did not immediately make much difference as Onana, much maligned for handling errors this season, produced a strong arm to keep out Cameron Archer’s 20-yard drive.

For all their bluster, the Blades had come away from a strong opening 25 minutes without reward and they were punished as the visitors went ahead against the run of the play in the 28th minute.

McTominay, who rescued his side with two injury-time goals against Brentford before the international break, received the ball from Fernandes and his scuffed effort found its way into the bottom corner.

Things quickly turned sour for for McTominay, though, as just five minutes later he gave away a penalty when he handled James McAtee’s cross.

The incident survived a VAR check and McBurnie stepped up and stroked the spot-kick home for his first goal of the season.

McBurnie almost turned provider in the 41st minute when he slipped in Archer, but Onana bravely stopped with his face.

For all the home pressure, it was Ten Hag’s men who nearly took a lead into the half-time break as they had two late chances.

First Fernandes clipped the crossbar with a dipping free-kick before Rasmus Hojlund was denied by a fine save from Wes Foderingham, who rushed out and deflected the ball wide.

The Blades were on the front foot after the restart and Onana made another impressive stop, palming away Rhian Brewster’s effort after being wrong-footed.

United finally upped their game and created a raft of chances to go back in front.

Foderingham saved from Hojlund when the Dane should have scored, Marcus Rashford rolled wide at the far post and Sofyan Amrabat thundered a fierce 20-yard effort against the crossbar.

The breakthrough eventually came in the 77th minute when Dalot was afforded too much time on the edge of the area and he curled a shot into the top corner, though Foderingham got a hand to it and should have kept it out.

That proved enough as United remembered Charlton with victory which will not live long in the memory.

VARs Darren England and Daniel Cook will return to Premier League duty this weekend following their error in last month’s fixture between Tottenham and Liverpool.

England and Cook were the VAR and VAR assistant respectively when Liverpool forward Luis Diaz’s goal was incorrectly ruled out for offside in Tottenham’s 2-1 home win.

Both officials were stood down the following week, but England will be back as the fourth official for Brentford’s home game against Burnley on Saturday and Cook will return as assistant referee for Sheffield United’s home match against Manchester United.

Miscommunication between VAR England and referee Simon Hooper led to Diaz’s goal being wrongly ruled out on September 30, with the incident later described by referees’ chief Howard Webb as “a clear error”.

Hooper is the designated VAR for Newcastle’s home game against Crystal Palace on Saturday.

New VAR guidelines were introduced in the wake of the Diaz disallowed goal controversy, while audio of the incident was later released.

England mistakenly thought the on-field officials had ruled Diaz to be onside, which meant that when he told them ‘check complete’ they believed he had upheld their on-field decision and restarted play with a free-kick.

Once play had restarted, there was nothing the VARs could do to revisit the decision under existing protocols.

Referees’ body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) said it would develop a new VAR communication protocol in an effort to avoid similar mistakes being made in future.

PGMOL said the protocol would “enhance the clarity of communication between the referee and the VAR team in relation to on-field decisions”.

VARs will now also confirm the outcome of the checking process with the assistant VAR before confirming the final decision to the on-field officials.

One of the talking points from the latest round of fixtures was referee Michael Oliver’s decision not to send off Manchester City’s Mateo Kovacic for a challenge on Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard.

The City midfielder was shown a yellow card before avoiding another shortly afterwards and Webb later admitted Kovacic was “fortunate” to stay on the pitch.

Oliver will referee Sheffield United’s home game against Manchester United on Saturday.

Sheffield United defender Chris Basham has been “overwhelmed by support” following his shocking injury sustained at Fulham last week.

Blades boss Paul Heckingbottom described Basham’s injury as “horrific” after he broke his ankle in the first half at Craven Cottage.

The 35-year-old required extensive medical attention before the game resumed and has since had two operations.

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Basham said on Instagram: “Had my two surgery’s done now and I can’t thank the surgeons enough for the fast response to me, the first surgery was for cleaning up the wound I suffered and dislocation, the second surgery was to repair the ligaments and to fit a plate on my bone where the fracture was.

“I’m in a cast now and it feels a lot more comfortable.

“Will be in London still for another few days but then be going home to recover in the right way.

“Trying to stay positive everyday with great family and friends around me. Still overwhelmed by the support I have received thank you.”

Basham is in his 10th year with the Blades, having joined from Blackpool in 2014, and has made eight Premier League appearances this season.

The Blades won promotion back to the top flight last season but have yet to register their first win after eight matches and sit bottom of the table.

Fulham manager Marco Silva described Willian as “class” after the Brazilian’s stunning display in the 3-1 victory over Sheffield United at Craven Cottage.

The 35-year-old added Fulham’s third in stoppage time and was largely unplayable during a dominant performance.

Bobby De Cordova-Reid’s strike and an unfortunate Wes Foderingham own goal had twice put the Cottagers ahead with the Blades equalising after Antonee Robinson put into his own net.

After Willian opened his account for the season, Silva said: “He was class. He’s a class player and he has incredible quality.

“He played with a very good intensity and it was probably one of his best games this season so far and I’m really pleased for him because of the quality he has.

“He did so many things. The way he created on the left was very good.

“The players with the top quality can decide any moment of the game and they make the difference in football. The decisions Willian made came in the right moments and he’s a top-class player.

“He scored the goal because he believed he had other chances to score and I’m really pleased for him.”

Fulham have struggled for goals since the August departure of star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, scoring five times in the Premier League prior to the victory over the Blades.

Silva believes his players need to be more clinical in front of goal after missed chances in the first half gave Sheffield United a way back into the game through Robinson’s own goal.

“The first half we were at a very good level,” Silva added.

“From the right and the left we were creating from the first moments and when you create so many chances, the normal thing is to put the ball in the net because some of the chances were so clear.

“We are creating more and the goals have to come if you are creating the number of chances we are.

“It was a game where we could have scored more goals. But we got three and we have to be happy with three.”

Blades boss Paul Heckingbottom was left frustrated.

He said: “In the second half when you’re in control of the ball, losing it at the top-end of the pitch and for us to concede is poor and it’s a naivety.

“I can’t fault the effort, the organisation and the intent of the players but it’s a naivety when you’re playing against these.”

Willian rolled back the years as Fulham cruised to a 3-1 victory over Sheffield United.

The 35-year-old Brazilian produced a stunning display, cementing his side’s win with a third goal following Bobby De Cordova-Reid’s strike and an unfortunate Wes Foderingham own goal.

United’s only goal also came when Antonee Robinson put into his own net.

Fulham – looking to bounce back from their 2-0 defeat to west London rivals Chelsea on Monday – started strongly and in the sixth minute Willian picked the ball up on the left and beat his man on the outside before De Cordova-Reid failed to convert his inch-perfect delivery.

Willian was off the pace on Monday but he looked to make up for it with surging runs forward, one which nearly set up Vinicius before his own shot inside the box was saved by Foderingham after 19 minutes.

Play halted for an extended period after Blades skipper Chris Basham suffered a serious ankle injury which saw him carried off on a stretcher with the score at 0-0.

But the Willian show resumed immediately and Fulham went close when the former Chelsea winger combined with Vinicius on the break before a quality defensive tackle denied the hosts taking the lead after 40 minutes.

Sheffield United were being outfought, they rarely had meaningful touches in Fulham’s territory and their first-half performance begged the question as to where their chances would come from. Their hosts always looked the favourite to get the first goal.

And Fulham should have done just that but they squandered the best chance of the match so far during 14 minutes added-time.

Willian ghosted his marker with his explosive acceleration before he produced another exceptional cross to the feet of countryman Andreas Pereira who somehow found a way to sky his chance from six yards out.

Fulham’s wasted chances were a reminder as to why their five league goals are the joint-lowest in the Premier League this season.

But in the 53rd minute the Cottagers took a deserved lead through De Cordova-Reid.

Fulham transitioned quickly and a splitting pass from Pereira set the Jamaica international through before he held his nerve to convert past Foderingham and give the hosts a 1-0 advantage.

But in the 67th minute Sheffield United forced an own goal to level the score at 1-1.

Fulham’s Issa Diop went down injured but the Blades refused to kick the ball out and Yasser Larouci’s dangerous cross cannoned off Antonee Robinson into his own net.

The goal was far from deserved but the Cottagers paid the price for their earlier missed chances which opened the door for the opportunistic visitors to strike.

However substitute Tom Cairney bailed his side out when his long shot forced an own goal and gave Fulham the lead.

The Scot let fly, hitting the crossbar and the ball bounced on to the back of the well-beaten Foderingham and into the net as Fulham took a 2-1 lead in bizarre circumstances.

Willian got the goal he deserved in the eighth minute of stoppage time with a powerful shot that beat Foderingham and settled the game.

David Moyes believes Jarrod Bowen should be back in the England squad this week after his fifth goal of the season helped sink Sheffield United 2-0.

Gareth Southgate names his next squad on Thursday ahead of a friendly against Australia and the Euro 2024 qualifier with Italy.

Bowen, who earned four caps last year, was overlooked for the September internationals but Moyes feels his current form makes him hard to ignore.

“I would say Jarrod is as close now as he has ever been,” said Moyes.

“He’s in really good form, quick, sharp and looks like he can do a lot of things.

“I’m not going to pick the England team, but to play for England you have to be able to score in big games. Jarrod’s doing great for us.”

Bowen grabbed his goal after 24 minutes, timing his run into the box to perfection and burying Vladimir Coufal’s low cross.

Tomas Soucek added the second after he was slipped in by Michail Antonio as West Ham all but sewed up a comfortable victory before half-time.

“I liked what I saw in the first half. The first goal was brilliantly worked. There were lots of good things, but not so much in the second half,” added Moyes.

“I wanted us to score more goals but a lot of credit has to go to Sheffield United and their manager after a tough week and a big defeat. But ultimately we got the goals and the win.

“It’s three points in the Premier League and when you look at some of the results today, it shows you can’t just turn up and get three points.”

The Blades did at least improve on their 8-0 defeat at home by Newcastle six days earlier, not that they could have been any worse.

Their boss, Paul Heckingbottom, maintains they can still pick up enough points to stay up.

“We’ll see. I believe it,” he said. “If you look at our games we’ve not lost because other teams are far better, we’ve lost because of key moments. There’s evidence there that we can get the points.

“Results like last week happen. There’s been some surprising ones today. What I didn’t like was the nature of some of the things I saw, I was adamant it was a one-off and I don’t want to see again.

“No one’s going to feel sorry for us. We have to fight for those points.”

Jarrod Bowen and Tomas Soucek were on target as West Ham strolled to a 2-0 victory over rock-bottom Sheffield United.

The Blades, walloped 8-0 by Newcastle six days earlier, had the air of a team already resigned to relegation just seven matches into the season.

Their visit to the London Stadium was a welcome one for West Ham, who had suffered back-to-back defeats by Manchester City and Liverpool.

The only surprise was that the Hammers did not score more, although it could have been an entirely different story had the Blades opened the scoring after 10 minutes when Cameron Archer turned Kurt Zouma in the area, only for Nayef Aguerd to slide in and block his shot.

That was pretty much their only glimpse of Alphonse Areola’s goal in the first half as West Ham went for the jugular.

First Bowen out-muscled James McAtee on the byline and cut the ball back for Soucek, who blazed over the crossbar.

Then, from a James Ward-Prowse corner, Bowen had a header saved at point-blank range by Wes Foderingham, with Aguerd’s follow-up headed off the line by Luke Thomas.

The goal West Ham had been threatening arrived in the 24th minute when Vladimir Coufal crossed low into the penalty area.

Bowen had timed his run into the box to perfection and arrowed a first-time finish past Foderingham for his sixth goal in the Premier League this season, and his first at home.

West Ham, sensing they could fill their boots just like Newcastle did against the Blades a week earlier, poured forward with Michail Antonio curling a shot just wide and Soucek narrowly off target with a glancing header.

Nine minutes before the interval they doubled their lead after the visitors lost possession as they tried to play out from the back.

Emerson Palmieri’s pass along the edge of the box found Antonio, who unselfishly slipped in Soucek to slot the ball home.

After the break Archer had a half chance in the area but his shot was deflected over the crossbar.

And a miserable afternoon for the Blades got even worse when captain John Egan limped off.

They should have been further behind when Bowen rounded Foderingham and pulled the ball back, but Antonio could not find the finish.

Aguerd headed wide from another Ward-Prowse corner before Blades striker Oliver McBurnie could have set up a nervous finish for the hosts, only to see his header fly the wrong side of the near post.