Sheffield United 1 Huddersfield Town 0: Wasteful Blades finally made to sweat when the Terriers thought positively

More than a year on, the Blades practically dared the Terriers to do it again.

Making anyone sweat on an afternoon so cold even the first-half streaker was well wrapped up, but Huddersfield managed that, if no more.

Ultimately the Blades limped over the line with a 1-0 win.

For 45 minutes, the hosts had their bottom-of-the-table opponents right where they wanted them. But whilst 74 per cent of the ball was rewarded with a lovely Billy Sharp goal, it was one of only two shots they had on target before the break and four in the match.

When Huddersfield crawled out of survival mode, a formality of a game suddenly became interesting. With seven minutes to go, Anel Ahmedhodzic was booked for time-wasting with the lead still at 1-0.

The Blades will be wondering how they managed to make life so difficult for themselves.

If it was Huddersfield who needed a fresh start much more of the two sides, initially it was Sheffield United who looked far better for it.

One exception in red-and-white stripes was Sharp, who helped himself to his first goal of what before the World Cup had been a frustrating, injury-disrupted season.

Having had an awful long time to think about how they would play against the second-placed team in the Championship, bottom-of-the-table Huddersfield were horribly passive, letting their hosts have the ball and hoping to hit them through Sorba Thomas on the counter-attack. It soon became a pretty forlorn hope.

They set out with three centre-backs, yet Sharp still managed to find space between and around them, and wrapped them in a thick blanket of team-mates.

Sharp was not the only home player who looked better for a four-week break for the World Cup. Manchester City loanee James McAtee is yet to properly put his stamp on senior football but he was very good on Saturday, buzzing around the left of a three-man midfield to good effect until he was forced to run the other way and ran out of steam.

Illiman Ndiaye has had no rest at all, only flying back from Qatar on Tuesday, but the Senegal forward looked like someone who has been playing for an training with the African champions.

"Our World Cup hero" got the big build-up and acclaim before the match and immediately set about justifying it.

The game was just three minutes old when he got on the end of a Ben Osborn pull-back. Michal Helik, who was disappointed not to make Poland's squad, headed the shot wide.

McAtee had a taste for it too, picking up the ball from John Egan and running at the packed blue-and-white ranks before Tom Lees blocked his shot.

Oliver Norwood ballooned a chance after a quarter of an hour when Lees stood off Ndiaye and allowed him to dribble in the area before picking out the midfielder.

The opening goal came a minute later, Ndiaye's footwork putting Lees and Jack Rudoni on their backsides and his pass picking out Sharp, who had pulled to the left of the back three. Sharp's chipped finish was worthy of the build-up.

It did not, though, open the floodgates.

McAtee hit a shot against a defender and had another headed behind by Will Boyle as Lee Nicholls dived behind him to try and keep it out. A lovely turn met with another blocked shot.

Ahmedhodzic whipped over a cross that did not get a touch and after a dribble which warmed the crowd, Ndiaye played an exquisite chest pass to McAtee.

If the Blades disappointingly only had two first-half shots on target, it was two more than Town.

Rudoni played a lovely pass around the corner to release Duane Holmes but Ahmedhodzic smothered the cross, and Thomas picked out the Bosnian after robbing Enda Stevens.

The Blades knew how dangerous Huddersfield can be from corners, so did not concede one.

Huddersfield changed tack at the break, bringing on defendsive midfelder Jonathan Hogg – soon into the book for a late and hefty challenge on Norwood – but much more positive in their thinking. With summer siugning Tyreece Simpson finally fit to make his debut, they even had the luxury of attacking options on the bench.

Holmes made space for their first shot on target after 54 minutes but it was at Wes Foderingham. For all that Josh Ruffels' ball was overhit when Holmes released him, the intent was much better.

The home supporters started to get edgy and as Brahima Diarra's dribbling was added, Paul Heckingbottom turned to Sander Berge to take back some midfield control.

And for all the improved positivity, Holmes' would be Town's only effort on target.

Not the Blades could ever breathe a sigh of relief until the five added minutes were up.

It was harder work than it ought to have been, and the Terriers can take a lot of credit for that. Just no points.

Sheffield United: Foderingham; Ahmedhodzic, Egan, Clark; Baldock, Osborn, Norwood, McAtee (Berge 65), Stevens; Ndiaye (McBurnie 80), Sharp (Khadra 80).

Unused substitutes: Davies, Basham, Lowe, Bogle.

Huddersfield Town: Nicholls; Boyle, Lees, Helik; Kesler-Hayden (Simpson 78), Kasumu (Hogg 46), Rudoni, Ruffels (Rhodes 78); Thomas, Ward, Holmes (Diarra 65).

Unused substitutes: Jackson, Bilokapic, Ayina.

Referee: D Bond (Lancashire).