Relegation isn't an issue at all, never has been.
I know that that tag has always been labelled to us this season but I as a supporter I have never once been worried. We are the official yo-yo team, there's no doubt about that, so Sunderland supporters know better than anyone when they see a team with potential relegation hanging over their heads.
So for me to say I have never been once concerned speaks volumes for the current regime. Roy Keane has instilled fitness and discipline in to the side, which are two basic attributes I admit, but which are so badly needed in football.
Look at Newcastle for instance, bags of quality within their ranks, but no discipline or organisation to speak of prior to playing Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. They were on a real bad run, but it wasn't for the lack of talent, certainly not, it was down to organisation and the "never say die" attitude which was evidently lacking.
That has never been the problem for Sunderland this season, and to back it up all you need to do is look at how many goals have been scored inside the last 10 minutes of games and effectively how many points have been won as a result.
I don't fear anyone out of our remaining games, not even Arsenal on the last day (hopefully everything will be wrapped up by then anyway) as we played well against them this season and only narrowly lost 3-2, one of the few teams to score two at the Emirates Stadium I might add.
Fulham are down for sure so they will be fighting to try and scrape themselves out of the relegation zone so it will be a scrappy game on Saturday, but our defence will hold firm and with Richardson and Reid pulling the strings from midfield and Kenwyne Jones up top I don't think we have anything to worry about.
At home we are a different team and it's a daunting task for any team to come to the Stadium of Light against our crowd and try to get a result. Also Manchester City have gone a little off the boil recently, I don't think their foreign players like the cold and they certainly won't get a warm breeze in the north-east!
So I also predict victory against them too, which should seal our Premier League status for next season and silence the doubters.
Johnny Evans would be a cracking signing if we could make the deal permanent, but the real key is Nyron Nosworthy. They complement each other beautifully and the term "two peas in a pod" has never been better applied anywhere.
Nosworthy really is a rags to riches character from his time as right-back at Gillingham, in and out of the team, to lifting the Championship trophy for Sunderland as a composed cultured centre-half with a player of the season accolade to boot, a real fan favourite.
Certainly though Evans' signature would be a welcome addition so that they can cement their partnership together, which is definitely the view of every Sunderland fan.
Roy Keane's appointment was a masterstroke by Niall Quinn, all you have to do is look at how far we have come in such a short time. When he took over we had lost five or six consecutive games and were bottom of the championship (unthinkable for a team just relegated from the Premiership).
We had also been branded the worst team in English league football as Bury (who were bottom of league Two without a win at the time) dumped us out of the first round in the League Cup, a pretty embarrassing time to be a Sunderland supporter.
Roy Keane turned all that around and we ended up going on an amazing run which led us to winning the Championship when consolidation was the only word on SAFC supporters lips after he was appointed.
Of course now we're in the Premier League and only the pessimists among us can not see the second Premier League term awaiting us on the horizon.
5 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment
Andrew McNair about 1 year ago
Have you been happy with Graig Gordon's first EPL season Daniel? Enjoyed the article.
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Tim Yu about 1 year ago
I'm sure he's ecstatic about Graig Gordon. Only joking ;).
Anyways, best of luck to Sunderland, I'm sure they'll make it out in the end as I don't see Fulham or Bolton climbing out of the relegation zone. I also wouldn't be surprised if Wigan fell down the standings but I guess only time will tell.
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Daniel Brown about 1 year ago
Best of luck to Rangers by the way, looks like they have it in the bag after the win over celtic. I'm a protestant so have always had a soft spot for Rangers. You think they can progress in the Uefa Cup too?
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Andrew McNair about 1 year ago
I'm not sure Daniel. Too many big games at the end of the season. Celtic twice and a uefa cup semi inbetween. Great for the fans...hard work on the pitch and many of the players are pretty tired already. A domestic treble is well within our grasp however.
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Daniel Brown about 1 year ago
Thanks for the comments guys. Yeah i'm happy with Gordon, he maybe does not command his area as well as he should for the size of him but he's a great shot stopper. I felt a bit harsh on Darren Ward as he had a great season last year and has not done anything wrong when it's been asked of him, but can't complain with Gordon. He's still young and as a keeper has plenty of years left in him so the experience he'll gain will only make him better, just too bad he's scottish!
The fulham game went as predicted with a cracking consolation goal from healy to boot. Hopefully that will keep our heads above water and can look forward to a pressure free end to the season, which is something i'm yet to experience as a sunderland fan!
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