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Sunderland secured a ninth straight season in the Premier League

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Sunderland secured a ninth straight season in the Premier League after a 0-0 draw with Arsenal at the Emirates stadium.

This was a huge result for new manager Dick Advocaat, who had come to the club only a few months ago to replace Gus Poyet. Sunderland have been only narrowly avoiding relegation for the last couple of years and they were in danger of going into the last day of the season as one of the three clubs that could join QPR and Burnley into the championship. This was avoided after a draw with Arsenal brought them the desired points to keep them in the league for another season.

This means that Newcastle United and Hull City will be fighting out each other for the final relegation spot at the end of the campaign. Newcastle undoubtedly go in with a much better position since they are two points ahead of Hull and they have a home match against West Ham. Steve Bruce’s team, however, are up against Manchester United on the final day of the season. Sunderland went into the Arsenal match with a highly defensive oriented mentality. Midfielder Jack Rodwell had just returned to the squad after overcoming an injury problem. Rodwell, though, was not used in the 90 minutes. Continue reading “Sunderland secured a ninth straight season in the Premier League”

Sunderland undoubtedly have had the upper hand

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Sunderland undoubtedly have had the upper hand over arch rivals Newcastle United when it comes to the Tyne Wear derby in recent years.

Midfielder Jack Rodwell hopes that it is the case once again when the two teams meet each other at the Stadium of Light this weekend. Rodwell’s participation in the match is going to be highly doubtful, but after having completed 90 minutes of action against West Ham in the 1-0 defeat, he will be confident. Winger Adam Johnson has been a key part in this fixture over the last couple of years. He has scored in the last two Tyne Wear derbies.

Sunderland will be given a huge lift due to the presence of a new manager on the dugout. Dick Advocaat failed to lead his team to victory in his first match, but all that will be forgotten by the Sunderland faithful if the club manage yet another victory over Newcastle, who are having yet another comfortable end to the season. Newcastle caretaker manager John Carver will be aware that his team will be safe from relegation if we get another victory under their belt and he has eight matches to do so. Hence, it is quite possible that Newcastle will not be sharp for this encounter. Continue reading “Sunderland undoubtedly have had the upper hand”