Sheffield United manager Nigel Adkins has backed his players to bounce back from successive home defeats ahead of their derby clash away to Bradford City on Sunday.

Adkins saw his side lose 3-2 to Colchester last Tuesday, the club's second consecutive home defeat after going down 3-1 to Bury three days earlier.

"The home defeats are in the past now, we have analysed them and we must learn from our mistakes, but we have drawn a line under them. As I have said previously, there are no easy games in this division and that point has been proved again, but we bounced back well from the Gillingham setback on the opening day and we have to do the same again now," the 50-year-old told the club's official website.

"Bradford have a host of attacking threats, both individually and collectively, they are a strong side, difficult to beat at home and they often put the opposition under a lot of pressure. Although Sunday for me is about us, it is about us asserting ourselves on the game like we did at Peterborough and Swindon and as always the first goal will be crucially important.

"The television cameras will be there, we will have our usual excellent travelling contingent backing us and Bradford are a well supported club too so it should be a cracking derby atmosphere."

The Blades currently sit in 8th position in League One, with Bradford lying in 17th.