New data shows where Sheffield United rank for Premier League injuries this season

The website monitors the injuries all top-flight clubs suffer and they have revealed the total number of days each has lost due to them this season.

The average for the division is 814, but the Blades are one of five clubs to have lost players for over 1,000.

Their 1,081 is behind only Newcastle, Brentford, Brighton and Hove Albion and Chelsea.

When it comes to the number of injuries, bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United's record of 23 is only the joint 11th worst, but it is the length of time players have been out for which is hurting them the most.

Rhys Norrington-Davies, Max Lowe and Chris Basham are not expected to play again this season, and manager Chris Wilder has admitted his captain, John Egan, will do well to take to the field again before the season is out.

Newcastle United are top for both the number of injuries and the amount of time they have been without them, and have found it difficult to adapt to a first season of European football for a decade.

Credit is due to the physios at West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers, whose days lost are less than half the Premier League injuries.

That so many teams are having to do without so many top players is something the authorities ought to look at but are unlikely to in their ravenous quest for more and more televised football.

Liverpool made great play of being without a host of top players for Sunday's showpiece League Cup final, yet they are only ninth in the table.

Title challengers Manchester City and Arsenal have both been below average for the number of days lost to injury.

Sign up to our new Sports Editor’s TeamTalk newsletter available this week