Six things you might have missed from City 3-1 Blades

1 - Take your time...

It's been nine years since that Chris Wilder rant that took aim at everyone from Norwich City's coach driver to what he saw as their time-wasting.

Since that point, Bramall Lane has not been a happy hunting ground for City. Their record stands at P:5, W:0, D:2, L:3. During that time, they've conceded eight times and scored on five occasions.

Bramall Lane is often a useful barometer of Championship progress; it is a place where everything is earned, and nothing is given.

This is the Blades' first home defeat since April. They've lost only 12 on their home patch under Wilder since they were relegated back to Championship at the start of the 2024/25 campaign. It is only the fifth time during that period that they've been beaten by a two-goal margin.

That underscores the quality of Norwich's performance. This was their 10th on the road in 2026, the fifth time in the last 30 years they've done so. It is the second-earliest time that feat has been reached, behind 2015, when Alex Neil took them on an incredible run that ended in promotion to the Premier League.

Norwich City certainly did take their time. The hope now is that this becomes their way.

2 - Cutting-edge

After a frustrating midweek in Stoke, Norwich City's cutting edge at Bramall Lane was the defining feature of Saturday's win.

City created 19 shots, eight of which were on target, and racked up an expected goals tally of 3.04, their highest of the Championship campaign to date.

29 touches in the Sheffield United box told the same story about a Norwich side willing to sacrifice territorial control for directness, committing bodies forward and backing that intent with genuine quality in the final third.

The contrast with the trip to Stoke four days earlier could hardly be starker. There, Norwich enjoyed their highest possession share of the season at 71pc, yet managed only five shots, three on target, and an anaemic expected goals return of 1.44.

Taken together, the two performances suggest Clement's Norwich are still searching for a reliable route to goal when opponents sit deep and dare them to break them down through control alone; it is when they play with less possession but greater purpose, committing players forward and taking risks in behind, that their attacking identity truly comes to life.

If City are to sustain their early-season progress, translating spells of Stoke-style dominance into Sheffield United-style incision will be the clearest marker of genuine improvement under Clement.

Anthony Musaba was the standout performer in an impressive attacking display. (Image: Max Tomlinson/Focus Images Ltd)

3 - Marvellous Musaba

Anthony Musaba introduced himself to Norwich City in a star-studded display at Bramall Lane, netting once and causing constant problems for the Blades defence.

He was involved in three chances created and three passes into the final third, while five touches in the opposition box underlined how frequently he found himself in Sheffield United's danger areas, adding four successful dribbles as he repeatedly carried the ball into threatening positions.

Musaba's individual chance creation slots neatly into a team performance built on quality over control, complementing the 19 shots and 3.04 expected goals City managed as a whole.

His next step is to add more shots on target and ensure his output becomes more consistent to complement the threat he shows during matches with his ball-carrying and direct running.

Zoom out to his season so far, and the same pattern holds: few players in the Championship get into the box as often as Musaba does, and even fewer create as many shooting chances for their teammates, he is, fundamentally, a creator and a carrier of the ball rather than a natural finisher.

Nobody would have wanted Ali Ahmed to get injured in the way he did, but early evidence suggests Norwich have recruited well to bring Musaba to Norfolk, adding a winger that aligns neatly with Clement's style.

Philippe Clement has argued Norwich City’s points return hasn’t matched their performance. (Image: Max Tomlinson/Focus Images Ltd)

4 - Alignment

Before kick-off at Bramall Lane, the numbers backed up Philippe Clement’s nagging feeling that Norwich’s performances and points return were badly out of sync.

The Championship expected-points table had City sitting in the top half, with 6.6 from their first four games, with an expected goal difference of +1.2, yet the actual table showed just three points and a record of one win and three defeats.

Clement had already pointed to West Brom and Stoke as games his side ‘should have won’ on the balance of the chances created and conceded, only to come away empty-handed, and the underlying data agreed with him. Over those opening weeks, Norwich were playing more like a side pushing towards the play-offs than one drifting around mid-table.

Saturday’s win at Sheffield United was therefore as much about catching up with their own underlying numbers as it was about denting the Blades’ unbeaten run, finally banking three points that their chance creation and control had been threatening to deliver for a fortnight.

The mission now is about ensuring that alignment, achieved at Bramall Lane, is something that becomes consistent and turns into real points.

This was an afternoon that backs up Clement’s viewpoint over recent seasons.

Mo Toure has netted more Championship goals than any other player since his City debut. (Image: Max Tomlinson/Focus Images Ltd)

5 - MoBot

Since his Championship debut for Norwich City on February 7, nobody has scored more goals than Mo Toure.

In over 1,000 minutes of football, Toure is averaging a goal every 75 minutes and an away goal every 60 minutes. It is now 18 goal contributions in 18 Championship matches since his winter move from Danish side Randers.

For a striker still settling into a new country and a new division, that is an extraordinary level of reliability.

What makes that record all the more striking is how little else he seems to need to influence games. His underlying data paints the picture of a forward who does most of his talking with the finish rather than the build‑up.

Across his Norwich minutes, he is averaging just under two shots per 90 but scoring at a rate of 0.57 goals per 90, with half of those efforts hitting the target, a balance that speaks of economy rather than volume, a striker who waits for the right moment rather than firing on sight every time he receives the ball.

City know their Australian striker needs only a handful of moments per game to keep this extraordinary scoring run rolling.

Another important week of Championship football awaits Norwich City. (Image: Max Tomlinson/Focus Images Ltd)

6 - Thick and fast

After the first three game week of the season, Norwich bounce into another one knowing it represents a chance to build some much-needed consistency.

First, they welcome Birmingham to Carrow Road, a fixture that has turned sour of late. City have lost three of the last four meetings, including a 4-1 thrashing on Philippe Clement's first game in charge and a 1-2 defeat back in February. It is fair to say the Canaries have made significant progress since that chastening night at St Andrew's, but this weekend offers a chance to put that recent record right.

Chris Davies' side are unbeaten, but that run has included four draws, including Sunday's 2-2 thriller against Wolves at St Andrew's.

Following that is a trip to Teesside and Middlesbrough to face Kim Hellberg's side, who have only lost once at the start of this season. The Swede is a coach that Norwich spoke to previously about their own managerial vacancy, but has impressed since moving to the Riverside Stadium.

Norwich's last victory over Middlesbrough came nine meetings ago, a 1-0 victory at the Riverside in November 2020 on their way to their second Championship title under Daniel Farke back in the Covid-hit campaign.

If this is going to be a season of success for City, then overcoming this level of opponent and replicating their Bramall Lane efforts will be a necessity.