Sheffield United kept their slim chances of Premier League survival alive by beating Luton last weekend.

Manager Chris Wilder will hope the result represents a turning point with his side still seven points adrift of safety.

Victory at Kenilworth Road was the Blades' first since December and only their third in the top flight this season, so a significant improvement will be needed to avoid the drop.

Ahead of a tough clash against Brighton, we consider how they could pull off a great escape.

Park the bus

The numbers do not bode well for United.

Unsurprisingly given their position, they have scored the fewest (22) and conceded the most goals (60) in the division.

Worryingly, the Yorkshire outfit are underperforming their xG of 26.71 and have conceded more than their xGA of 50.88.

Addressing that will be the immediate priority for Wilder, who has at least been able to keep his team just about in the relegation battle.

Notably, the Blades average by far the lowest percentage of possession in the Premier League (37.85%).

Against an in-form Luton, they had just 32.98% of the ball but used that to their advantage, defending resolutely and finishing clinically on the counter-attack.

That is likely to be the blueprint as the Blades go into their remaining games as clear underdogs, with few predicting them to avoid relegation.

Stay focused

As well as a reliance on effective low blocks and efficient attacking, United will also need plenty of mental resilience.

Wilder was able to instil real tactical discipline and genuine team spirit during his previous spell at Bramall Lane, although things are more difficult this time around.

The Blades boss has looked to simplify things since his appointment.

Speaking after the victory at Luton, he said: "No one's talked about the gap. We just talked about the next game, ever since we came through the door.

"You can affect what you can affect, which is the performance. And hopefully that performance gives you an opportunity to win a game of football.

"I don't know what the points total is, seriously. I think we're about 12 or 13, something like that now. And you don't know what's going to happen as well, do you?

"So you've just got to get your head down, make sure we don't have too many days like we did last Saturday [against Aston Villa] and make sure you have some more days like we did today [against Luton]."

Big-game Blades

Wilder will undoubtedly have picked out certain fixtures as potential six-pointers.

Luton — 17th in the table and likely to be fighting until the end of the season to avoid the drop — will have been one of those games.

And the Blades play fellow strugglers Burnley, Nottingham Forest and Everton in the final five matches of the campaign.

If they can stay in touch until then, survival is certainly not out of the question.

Their ability to batten down the hatches and produce displays of resilience and backs-to-the-wall tactical ingenuity could be the difference.

But United will need their fair share of luck — and maintaining the performance level shown in their win at Luton will be key as they look to avoid an immediate return to the Championship.