Sheffield United boss Paul Heckingbottom admits VfB Stuttgart gave them a "tough" time.

The Blades lost their preseason clash 3-0, with Serhou Guirassy scoring a hat-trick.

Heckingbottom said: “It was a tough game against some good opposition and it was a real stretch for us.

“Ninety minutes for all barring Benie, which was the plan because he has not played now for four weeks and we didn't want to risk anything there. The plan was to keep everyone on the pitch.

“Our games every week are going to be tougher than that. We wanted to make sure we gave ourselves some tough opposition. They were a good, technical side, stronger than they were last season and we were not disappointed with their quality."