PitchMath
Championship · 2026

Sheffield United 3–2 Bolton Wanderers · Championship

3–2Full-time analysis

This page describes the completed match context. The result is not presented as a prior forecast.

Match at a glance

Sheffield United won 3–2.

Shots
1318
Shots on target
56
Expected goals
2.091.73
Possession
53%47%

Full time

What the match recorded

Sheffield United beat Bolton Wanderers 3–2. Recorded in this match (Sheffield United – Bolton Wanderers): shots 13–18, shots on target 5–6, expected goals 2.09–1.73, possession 53%–47%. This is what was recorded. It is not a claim that the result was foreseeable.

Pre-match record

What the data showed before kick-off. Kept for reference; it did not know the result.

Recent scheduling adds useful context

weak

A compressed recent schedule is recorded for Sheffield United, Bolton Wanderers.

3.2 days ▲Rest daysSheffield United · Bolton Wanderers3.2 days
Evidence and caveat

Comparison: Rest days and completed matches in the prior 14 days are shown directly.

Window: previous 14 days

MetricSheffield UnitedBolton WanderersBaseline
Rest days3.2 days3.2 days—
Matches last 14 days2 matches2 matches—

Caveat: The database does not describe travel, rotation decisions or player-level workload.

Sheffield United show a distinct attacking-volume record

weak

Sheffield United's shot volume and the opposing shot-allowance context sit below their competition baselines.

8.5 shots/match ▲ShotsSheffield United · Bolton Wanderers14 shots/match
Evidence and caveat

Comparison: Team shot volume is paired with the opponent's recorded shot allowance.

Window: season

MetricSheffield UnitedBolton WanderersBaseline
Shots8.5 shots/match14 shots/match13.6 shots/match
Shots against16.3 shots/match12 shots/match14.1 shots/match

Caveat: Shot volume describes activity; it does not establish finishing quality or a match outcome.

The teams have contrasting possession records

weak

Bolton Wanderers have recorded the higher season possession share.

40.5%PossessionSheffield United · Bolton Wanderers● 54%
Evidence and caveat

Comparison: The recorded possession gap is 13.5 percentage points.

Window: season

MetricSheffield UnitedBolton WanderersBaseline
Possession40.5%54%50.5%

Caveat: Possession share does not show where possession occurred or how chances were created.

This match

Match statistics

  • Shots13 shots18 shotsSheffield United 13 shots, Bolton Wanderers 18 shots
  • Shots on target5 shots6 shotsSheffield United 5 shots, Bolton Wanderers 6 shots
  • Expected goals2.09 xG1.73 xGSheffield United 2.09 xG, Bolton Wanderers 1.73 xG
  • Possession53%47%Sheffield United 53%, Bolton Wanderers 47%
  • Corners5 corners5 cornersSheffield United 5 corners, Bolton Wanderers 5 corners
  • Fouls8 fouls13 foulsSheffield United 8 fouls, Bolton Wanderers 13 fouls
  • Yellow cards0 cards2 cardsSheffield United 0 cards, Bolton Wanderers 2 cards
  • Passes442 passes386 passesSheffield United 442 passes, Bolton Wanderers 386 passes
  • Pass accuracy78.3%77.7%Sheffield United 78.3%, Bolton Wanderers 77.7%
  • Shots inside box9 shots14 shotsSheffield United 9 shots, Bolton Wanderers 14 shots
  • Blocked shots1 block4 blocksSheffield United 1 block, Bolton Wanderers 4 blocks
  • Goalkeeper saves4 saves1 saveSheffield United 4 saves, Bolton Wanderers 1 save
  • Offsides3 offsides2 offsidesSheffield United 3 offsides, Bolton Wanderers 2 offsides

As it happened

Key moments

  1. 1′Xavier SimonsGoal · Bolton Wanderers
  2. 4′Japhet TangangaGoal · Sheffield United
  3. 39′Gaizka LarrazabalYellow card · Bolton Wanderers
  4. Half-time
  5. 49′John McAteeYellow card · Bolton Wanderers
  6. 67′Sam DalbyGoal · Bolton Wanderers
  7. 68′Patrick BamfordGoal · Sheffield United
  8. 90′Romelle DonovanGoal · Sheffield United
  9. Full time
Player changes · 10grouped by team and minute
  • 46′Bolton Wanderers · 1 player changeLewis Brunt
  • 61′Sheffield United · 2 player changesThomas Cannon · Kalvin Phillips
  • 62′Sheffield United · 1 player changeOliver Arblaster
  • 75′Bolton Wanderers · 1 player changeRúben Rodrigues
  • 80′Sheffield United · 1 player changeJamie Shackleton
  • 81′Bolton Wanderers · 2 player changesJayden Nelson · Max Conway
  • 86′Sheffield United · 1 player changeRhys Norrington-Davies
  • 90′Bolton Wanderers · 1 player changeEthan Erhahon

Metric comparison

Team comparison

Season averages, with the sample size beside each metric.

Where the edge is

Season: Sheffield United favored in 0 of 13 directional metrics · Bolton Wanderers in 0 · 13 too close

led this metric higher value (descriptive) too close

Window

Season

Sheffield United4 matchesBolton Wanderers4 matches
1.25 goals/match ▲Goals scored4/41 goal/match
1 goal/match ▲Goals allowed4/41.25 goals/match
1.43 xG/match ▲Expected goals4/41.13 xG/match
8.5 shots/matchShots4/4▲ 14 shots/match
3 shots/matchShots on target4/4▲ 4.5 shots/match
40.5%Possession4/4● 54%
3 corners/matchCorners4/4● 6.5 corners/match
10.3 fouls/matchFouls4/49.75 fouls/match

Evidence quality

How much supports this analysis

Grade C · Limited evidenceLimited evidence — limited
Season samples4 / 4home / away teams
Recent samples4 / 4last-five windows
FreshnessLess than one dayfrom nearest prior match
  • At least one team has fewer than the configured season sample.
  • At least one team has an incomplete last-five window.

Known unknowns

  • Lineups, injuries, suspensions and tactical changes are not available in the retained dataset.
  • Some metrics are unavailable or below their observation minimum: cards.
  • The completed-match sample is too small for broad style conclusions.
Analysis cutoff: Tue, 1 Sept 2026, 22:45 UTC · analysis-v4

Team rankings in Championship

Goals per match rankingxG per match rankingShots per match ranking
TeamsSheffield UnitedBolton Wanderers
CompetitionChampionship
MethodHow PitchMath calculates this

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