Sunderland's late disappointment against QPR was a demonstration of just how 'ruthless' teams can be in the Championship - and Alex Neil expects it to be elevated to another level when the Black Cats face Sheffield United tonight. The Black Cats saw victory slip through their fingers at the Stadium of Light on Saturday, as a free-kick from Ilias Chair with a couple of minutes remaining followed by an incredible injury-time equaliser from goalkeeper Seny Dieng saw the Londoners salvage a point from a game that had looked beyond them.
Neil says it was an object lesson in how making the big moments count is more important than which side performs best over the 90 minutes as a whole. And ahead of this evening's trip to Bramall Lane, he warns that Sunderland will face their toughest test of the season so far when they take on a Blades side that finished in the Championship play-offs last season and prior to that had spent two seasons in the Premier League, with one of those campaigns seeing them finish in the top half.
"In the Championship the tactics are like a chess match," said Neil, whose side is unbeaten in three league games since returning to the second tier. "You make one error and you get punished.
