Sunderland vs. Liverpool: 5 Key Questions Ahead of Stadium of Light Battle

Fresh from a last-gasp home defeat at Anfield, courtesy of the brilliance of Arsenal’s Robin van Persie, Liverpool will be traveling to the Stadium of Light this Saturday to face in-form Sunderland, who secured a hard-fought derby draw against Newcastle last weekend.

Martin O’Neill’s side will be without two of their key first-team players in captain Lee Cattermole and forward Stephane Sessegnon, who are both suspended following their red-card dismissals last Sunday.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have injury doubts of their own.

Captain Steven Gerrard and right-back Glen Johnson missed their clash against Arsenal last week and while they have returned to training, they might still be unavailable this Saturday.

As we look forward to what will be an interesting match, here are five questions to consider ahead of Liverpool’s visit to Sunderland.

Let us know what you think in the comments below.

How Will Last Week’s Results Affect Both Teams?

Last weekend, Sunderland weathered a second-half battering from Newcastle in the Tyne-Wear derby, and by the end, were fortunate to escape with a point.

With two men sent off, the Black Cats fought valiantly against the endless wave of Newcastle attacks—a severe physical and mental examination that they managed to barely survive.

Meanwhile, Liverpool suffered what could be a morale-damaging defeat against Arsenal.

Having dominated the run of play—and having scored the opening goal—they will have been absolutely gutted to not only lose their lead, but also three points.

Yet again, their finishing left much to be desired.

Will it be Sunderland or Liverpool who go into Saturday’s clash with brighter optimism?

How Crucial Are the Absences of Sunderland’s Key Men?

As a fan, it’s disappointing not to be able to see two of Sunderland’s most important players against Liverpool.

Lee Cattermole and Stephane Sessegnon, both sent off for silly reasons, will be a big miss with the former’s bite and hard tackling in the midfield, and the latter’s pace and creativity up front.

Sunderland have considerable depth in their midfield, but none of them comes close to captain Cattermole’s tenacity and fierceness.

On the brighter side, of course, none of them has quite the tendency to get sent off as he does either.

Sessegnon might be the greater miss.

With six goals and seven assists in the league, he tops both charts for Sunderland.

While James McClean is a top prospect and Fraizer Campbell has performed well on his return from injury, neither can take up his mantle in the Sunderland attack.

It will be up to the rest of the squad to make sure they can cope against a Liverpool side who, on their day, can be relentless in their attack.

How Long Will the O’Neill Factor Last?

If you take just the games Martin O’Neill was in charge for at the Stadium of Light from December to February, Sunderland would be sitting top of the league.

His results at the helm have been well-noted: seven wins, two draws and four losses in 13 games.

Under Steve Bruce, this team had been underperforming, especially considering their productive and well-planned summer dealings.

However, they seem to have finally realized their potential under O’Neill, who has brought the Midas touch to Sunderland.

But all golden ages do come to an end, and this team cannot power through on the O’Neill factor alone.

Has he truly transformed their fortunes, or is this just a honeymoon that might come crashing down any instant?

Sunderland have proved their mettle with fantastic results against Manchester City and Arsenal.

Their attempts to repeat these feats against Liverpool will make for fascinating watching.

Will Liverpool Continue Their Away Record?

Following a run of abysmal home draws, the “Fortress” has been ripped away as the prefix to Anfield.

But while Liverpool continue to underwhelm at home, they have been quietly impressive on their travels, replicating their dominance in possession and attacking threat as though they were playing at home.

Back in August, in Liverpool’s first league game of the season, Sunderland’s visit to Anfield ended in a frustrating draw for the Reds, who experienced a second half in stark contrast to their swashbuckling first.

This will be a perfect chance for Liverpool to make a statement—and revive any remaining hopes of a Top Four finish.

Have Liverpool Found an Answer to Their Troubles in Front of Goal?

All followers of the Premier League will know by now that Liverpool’s profligate finishing this season is the one factor that separates them from the big boys.

What started as a sequence of bad luck has manifested itself into a chronic problem: Liverpool just can’t score goals.

This has been apparent all season long, but Kenny Dalglish doesn’t seem to have found an answer to Liverpool’s troubles yet.

With the woodwork hit around 20 times—and the number of goalscoring chances gone begging more than any other team in the league—finishing remains Liverpool’s Achilles’ heel.

Saturday will show us just where they are on the path to "clinicality."

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