Caretaker boss Paul Heckingbottom says Sheff Utd ‘lacked quality’ in their 2-1 defeat to Leeds.
The Yorkshire derby was ultimately decided by an own goal from veteran centre-back Phil Jagielka.
Jack Harrison had previously opened the scoring by finishing off a nice Leeds move.
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Ben Osborn brought the Blades level in first half injury time by shooting from close range. Defender Luke Ayling tried to block the chance but couldn’t keep it out.
The loss is Sheff Utd’s 24th of the Premier League season.
Since the departure of Chris Wilder in mid-March, they’ve lost three games and conceded nine goals.
Reacting to the defeat, Heckingbottom told Amazon Prime (via BBC Sport): “The effort and the fight was there. There were too many moments where we lacked quality. We gave Leeds their best chances on the counter. That was the most frustrating thing.
“We came back into the game winning set-pieces in good positions but then the quality wasn’t there. We were our worst enemy today.
“As the first half wore on we kept winning the ball higher up, but again, we didn’t open them up and had too many shots from distance and too many lost balls.
“In the second half it was similar, but we got opened up again when we didn’t fully commit to a break. We couldn’t quite put them under pressure.”
Speaking about Jagielka’s unfortunate own goal, Heckingbottom added: “You have to try and get something on it. It’s probably a goal from the striker so you have to commit to that as a defender.”
The Blades’ day was worsened by injuries to full-backs George Baldock and Jayden Bogle.
One positive, however, was the return of John Egan. The defender has been one of their better players in a tough campaign.
He came on in the second half and did well to keep Leeds from scoring a third.
Sheff Utd’s relegation has been pretty much a certainty for a while now. They sit at the foot of the table after winning just four times in 30 matches.
Those at the club will be looking ahead towards next season.
Owner Prince Abdullah is in the midst of a manager search which will aim to bring stability back to Sheff Utd.
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