Sunderland Vs Everton Official Sunderland Not606 Match Thread

Sunderland Vs Everton
Official Sunderland Not606 Match Thread

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Sunderland are hoping to maintain their resurgence when they host Everton at the Stadium of Light on Sunday lunchtime.

Gus Poyet believes Monday’s 3-1 win over Crystal Palace, courtesy of two goals from Steven Fletcher, will have a brought his players back to life following a painful previous fortnight.

Sunderland had lost two games, conceding 10 goals in the process, prior to beating Palace and the unrest had been mounting around the club.

However, they will now face Everton with renewed confidence and will hope their visitors might be suffering from a European hangover.

Roberto Martinez’s team impressively beat Lille in midweek to keep them on course for the Europa League knockout stages but it has not been that straightforward in the Premier League.

Everton sit ninth in the table ahead of the weekend and were frustrated by 10-man Swansea in their last outing.

But, despite some inconsistent form, they are unbeaten in three top-flight games and are just four points behind the top four.

Stadium Of Light

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Match Apointments

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Sunderland Team News
Patrick van Aanholt will be missing for Sunderland as a result of the shoulder injury he sustained in the win over Palace.

Poyet could welcome back Jack Rodwell against the midfielder’s former club but Billy Jones, Emanuele Giaccherini, Ricky Alvarez and Sebastian Coates remain absent while Lee Cattermole is suspended.

Everton Team News
Sylvain Distin will replace Antolin Alcaraz at centre-back for Everton after the latter suffered a dislocated shoulder last weekend.

Ross Barkley, who has been compared to Paul Gascoigne by England manager Roy Hodgson, is expected to be in the first XI after being rested against Lille.

Stats & Facts
Head-to-head

• The three most recent meetings have ended 1-0 - resulting in two wins for Sunderland and one for Everton.
• The Toffees have lost just one of their last 10 league and cup games away to the Black Cats (W6, D3).

Sunderland

• The Black Cats have scored 10 own goals since August 2013, including four in their last three games.
• Steven Fletcher has scored 11 headed goals in the Premier League since August 2011, the joint-most in the division along with Peter Crouch.
• Wes Brown has scored six Premier League own goals - only Richard Dunne (10) and Jamie Carragher (seven) have more.

Everton

• The Toffees' 0-0 draw with Swansea was the first time in 12 Premier League games they have failed to score.
• It was their first goalless draw in the Premier League since 9 November 2013 (away to Crystal Palace).
• The last time they were unable to score in back-to-back top-flight matches was in February 2014, when they were beaten 1-0 by Tottenham and then Chelsea.
• Leighton Baines has six Premier League assists this season. Prior to the weekend, only Gylfi Sigurdsson (seven) and Cesc Fabregas (nine) had more.

Head to Head

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Last Corresponding Fixture

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Form

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Betting
http://www.oddschecker.com/football/english/premier-league/sunderland-v-everton/winner

Links
http://www.safc.com/fans/visiting-fans

Streaming
http://www.wiziwig.tv/broadcast.php?matchid=285313&part=sports
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Gerrin

 

Can't wait mate. Wish it was tomorrow.

 

Normally i would be the same but its the bairns b'day party the morra so for once i dont mind

 

Gerrin - not just for the game but a proper match build up thread - nice one Bri.

I don;t see this being a run away. They've just played in europa last night and have a couple of injuries. Barkley is only just back from a long termer so we need a good, fair, hard tackle on him in the first 5 minutes and he'll be worried for his safety for the rest of the game.

Looking forward to this one. Gigging in Newcastle almost straight after the match as well!!

 

Thanks Funk, great post . Our record against this lot isn't as bad as I thought reading this.

 

Used to be our boogie team but we've shrugged the monkey of late.

 

Thank for he thread Bri, quality as ever. Sneaking feeling we'll get a win out of this. Can see Rodwell rising to the occasion and seeing off Barkley with Vergini getting the winner providing we can peg Baines back. May see AJ coming back in on the right and drop Buckley to the bench. HAWAY!

 

You should have seen last weeks

I fancy us too. I'm also expecting Vergini to score a screamer at some point this season. His shooting technique for a CB is phenomenal.

 

We were great last night and are starting to get back to where we were last season. Coleman should be back and Barkley may get the nod ahead of Osman. I can see us dominating possession, whether we get a result will depend on how clinical we are imo.

 

Aye - just ask Southampton

 

Seamus Coleman and Gareth Barry are facing fitness tests ahead of Sunday’s trip to the Stadium of Light.

Coleman sat out of the 3-0 victory over Lille after sustaining a cut to his Achilles in last weekend’s scoreless draw at home to Swansea.

Barry was forced from the field in the second half of Thursday’s Europa League match after he also received a gash on his shin and a knock to his ankle.

Roberto Martinez is hopeful both can play against Sunderland but, at his pre-match press conference on Friday, admitted it was too early to tell whether they will be in the squad that travels to Wearside.

“Seamus had a little cut to his Achilles tendon against Swansea and he needed some stitches," he said. "We are assessing that.

“He couldn’t make it yesterday but I wouldn’t consider it as a real issue. It’s about taking the doctor’s view before the [Sunderland] game and making a decision based on that.

“We came through the game last night with just a knock to Gareth Barry.

"This morning he was showing a long cut on his shin which is nothing to worry about, but he got a massive knock on the ankle and we need to give it another 24 hours.

“Apart from that, the whole squad that was available last night will be available for the game against Sunderland.”

Martinez was handed a boost with the news Antolin Alcaraz not requiring surgery on his dislocated shoulder, while Kevin Mirallas, sidelined since pulling his hamstring in the Merseyside derby, is closing on a return.

"In Antolin’s case, we have decided not to go through surgery," added the Spaniard. "The specialist feels that is the best way to approach the injury, which is great news. It reduces the period that he is going to be out.

"We will find out over the next few days how he responds but we are talking about a period of three, four and five weeks which is fantastic news from what we first feared.

“The international break is going to be a great period for Kevin and he has stepped up his work.

"As I have said before, it’s a soft tissue injury and in a sprinter it is difficult to put a timescale on that.

"But it is looking really good for Kevin to start playing before the turn of the year.”

 

Beat me to it

 

you might have been shrugging your monkey, pal.

 

They love a good boogie them scousers like ;-)

 

Looking forward to it. Hopefully the players feel like a weight has been lifted and they can take some confidence into the game.

Im going for a score draw.

 

We play Everton on Sunday - and, with that in mind, we spoke to our brethren over at Royal Blue Mersey to catch up ahead of this weekend's action.

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What’s your take on how things have gone so far this season for Everton? Results seem to have taken an upturn in recent weeks.

Everton played a pretty sub-par pre-season schedule, especially for a team that has Champions League aspirations. As a result, the team looked like they were still sleepwalking at the beginning of the season, being very un-Evertonlike in defence and shipping boatloads of goals.

Since then they have settled in and new signings like Samuel Eto'o have had a chance to integrate themselves into the squad and the team has looked better as a whole. Roberto Martinez has also had plenty of early-season injuries to contend with, especially to key members of the squad like Ross Barkley, Seamus Coleman, and Kevin Mirallas which have further limited his options.

Is Roberto Martinez still the man to take the club forward? It’s fair to say that the style of football has remarkably improved since he joined the club.

Oh yes, undoubtedly on both fronts. David Moyes did an excellent job with the limited resources he had to get the team on the periphery of Europe. Under Martinez though, the Blues are now showing they can take that extra step and actually contend on the continental stage. Whether Moyes could play attacking football and handle squad rotation is still up for debate, what is not questionable though is that Martinez understands how to get the team playing the same style on multiple fronts.

Speaking of style, Everton have shown more flair under the Spaniard, which comes from the possession-based passing game that he has entrenched at Goodison Park. Sometimes the passing does get too much especially when the attack has no teeth, but it does look a sight for sore eyes when the ball moves from end to end in a series of calculated and precise moves. The Toffees under Roberto are not so much a pure skill-based or flowing counter-attack team, they'll beat opponents with the 'death by a thousand cuts' method instead.

Jack Rodwell’s had a fairly poor start to life as a Sunderland player, finding himself in and out of the team. Do you think he’s going to live up to the hype at our club?

The lad needs to get his head sorted out. The hype was huge as he broke into the Blues senior squad and he was led to believe he was a bigger deal than he really was. Oil-fueled club sides in the Premier League will do that to younger players. Sitting on the bench for long periods of time at said club did nothing for his development, and he completely fell out of relevance. Going to the Black Cats is a great opportunity for him to show that he can amount to a decent player. If he can put his ego aside and work hard at establishing himself on the field again, there is no reason he cannot be successful at Sunderland. No doubt he has the talent, and if Gus Poyet gives him a stern talking-to, that could be his 'come to Jesus' moment.

It was a great win against Lille on Thursday, but teams playing midweek European games often find their league form fluctuates due to the increased schedule. Have you noticed an impact thus far this season?

Oh yes, definitely. Like I had mentioned previously, some critical injuries have limited Martinez's squad options and weary legs have made all the difference in Sunday fixtures after Europa League exploits midweek. The Blues have had two losses and just one win after a Thursday game so far this season, and that win was against Burnley so I wouldn't say it counts for too much either.

Squad rotation is key for balancing that workload, but it's difficult for a smaller side like Everton. I have to say though, the influx of television money has been a boon for the team, as they have been able to go out and spend a bit more freely than they have in the past. I fully expect Everton to be quite active in January bolstering key positions across the pitch.

Meanwhile, somewhere in a dark living room in Lancashire (or Glasgow?), a middle-aged, ginger-haired and icy-eyed man by the last name of Moyes is throwing his strategy books at the wall, raving and ranting "Where was this money when I took Everton to the Champions League qualifiers?!"

Who should Sunderland be looking out for at the weekend? Romelu Lukaku always tends to give us a good hiding!

Lukaku played the full ninety minutes yesterday, so I expect he'll be on the bench and Samuel Eto'o will get the start instead. Gareth Barry is suspended for this game, so the midfield pivot will be James McCarthy and Darron Gibson instead. Everton more often than not play a 4-2-3-1, so the triangle that the two holding midfielders play with Ross Barkley as attacking midfielder will be the key to the game. Sunderland will need to crowd the middle and cut out balls between that trio to shut down Everton's passing game.

Also, you cannot overlook the Leighton Baines factor. Baines spends a lot of time bombing up and down the left wing and the Black Cats will be well-served to have a 'spy' on him every time he crosses the midfield line. Seamus Coleman is out injured and will save your side a lot of grief on the other wing, so Sunderland can key in on the Blues left.

Although we’ve got a bit of an injury crisis, we still managed a decent away win against Palace on Monday. What are you expecting from Sunderland on Sunday?

That Saints game was more an anomaly than anything else, and own-goals aside Sunderland have actually defended decently otherwise. Palace have been quite the bugaboo for Everton lately, so any team that spanks them has my respect! Everton and Sunderland are similarly-sized clubs with proud traditions and excellent atmospheres at the respective stadiums. This being a Sunday game will not diminish the event and I expect the crowd to be roaring their side on. Everton's away support has been stellar this season so it could get raucous at the Stadium of Light.

I'm expecting Poyet to play for three points, so I think we'll see Sunderland play five in midfield looking to intercept passes and break down the wings. Everton have been susceptible to pace down the wings and from set-pieces too, and we know Seb Larsson all too well from the past.

Is there anyone in the Sunderland side you feel Everton might struggle to handle?

Steven Fletcher has been on an excellent run lately, and I think he'll be able to get in between Phil Jagielka and Sylvain Distin to cause trouble. It will be a relief to not have Lee Cattermole nipping at the the Blues midfielder's heels, but I'm also expecting Connor Wickham and Jordi Gomez to make some late runs and make hay between the defence and midfield lines.

Finally, do you have a score prediction?

I'm usually awful at these, but I'll give it a shot. Everton show their midweek blues again, going down to an early goal before throwing the kitchen sink and all the fittings at the home side and equalizing late with a dodgy goal - possibly a penalty from Leon Osman tripping on sod or a cross bouncing in off Wes Brown's knee.

 

Haaaaaaaaaawaaaaaaaaaay!

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Hey Funk ! I fancy …. defence picks itself,

Bridcott
Rodwell
Laarson Gomez Johnson

Fletch


Why is this thread so quiet, we will get a win tomorrow

 

How about this team for tomorrow....

Pants

Rev Brown O'Shea Robson

Larsson Rodwell Vergini (playing Catts role) Gomez Johnson

Fletcher

Any thoughts....? Got to start giving some on the young lads a go....Watmore and Mavrias options after 60 mins