If they had held onto victory in those two fixtures, Wilder’s outfit would be just three points from safety, albeit the deficit is essentially four given their horrendous goal difference. Instead, they remain rooted to the foot of the table.
The first half at Bramall Lane gave no indication of what was to come, with Ivo Grbic producing a sharp save to tip Muniz’s poked effort onto the post in the only incident of note.
But the second half was one of the most dramatic of the season, starting with Muniz again striking the post with a looping header.
Fulham’s opener felt like a matter of time – until Tosin Adarabioyo lost the ball in his own half, allowing McBurnie to cross for Brereton Diaz to tap in the opener.
Palhinha levelled from a corner four minutes later after some wretched Blades defending, before Brereton Diaz returned the favour for his strike partner, firing in a low cross for McBurnie to restore their side’s lead.
Brereton Diaz then bundled in Gustavo Hamer’s deep cross just two minutes later, with the goal surviving a VAR check for handball, while there was also a review for violent conduct after the forward, McBurnie and Bernd Leno all clashed in the aftermath.
United thought they had secured the points when McBurnie poked in his second after more dreadful Fulham defending, but the goal was rightly disallowed for offside against Vinicius Souza.
Moments later, Decordova-Reid fired in from the edge of the area to spark nervousness among the hosts – and their worst fears were realised when Muniz produced a moment of magic.
The powerful duo allow the Blades to be more direct. United attempted 75 long passes – their most of the season – at Bournemouth last time out and totalled nearly 50 against Fulham.
That McBurnie and Brereton Diaz both claimed assists to go with their goals shows how much they troubled Fulham’s back four.
But the bad news for United is that time may be running out. With just nine games to play, they are seven points from safety. Opta still rate their chances of escaping relegation at less than two per cent.
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