You don’t get long to rest on your laurels in the Premier League.
In a fairer world, Sunderland would have had a week to bask in the glory of the invigorating and much-praised performance against Chelsea. Or there’d even be an international break with Roy Hodgson putting away those blinkers and handing Lee Cattermole his first full England cap.
Instead it’s straight back into action against the moneyed elite of football, this time Manchester City. Can we maintain that impressive run of home wins against them, carry on where we left off at the Etihad at the start of the great run for survival last season? Or will the logic of all that money prevail?
This is how I summarised our prospects in my report for ESPN on the Chelsea game
… If only Sunderland can maintain this level of performance and start scoring goals more regularly, those familiar relegation nerves will quickly be eased and a decent midtable position secured.
With Manchester City visiting on Wednesday, followed by a tough trip to Anfield, there will be early tests of Sunderland’s ability to demonstrate consistency. But if they play as they did against Chelsea, they need have little to fear.
This is a rollover Guess the Score. Once again, no one had the Chelsea game down for a goalless draw.
So have a go and, maybe, win two fine mugs instead of the usual one – the generosity of the competition sponsors, Personalised Football Gifts, knows no bounds (it is, after all, owned by a Sunderland fan even though Monsieur Salut’s contact there is a Mag, albeit a very level-headed one).
The usual rules apply. Be the first, before kickoff, to post the correct score and you are the winner. If you are a Man City supporter, the mug’s design will reflect your allegiance. M Salut’s decision is final.
And the Man City “Who are You?” is now live at https://safc.blog/2014/12/the-man-city-who-are-you-history-says-1-0-to-sunderland/. It’s another cracking interview in the series.
No winners, which seems appropriate
NW MIdlands Blues, Malcolm?
I’m afraid the Northern Blues will be too strong and we’ll go down 2-0
1-0 Lets keep up the good work
3-2 to the Mighty Mackems.
2-1 to the lads,0-1 ar halftime,2 from fletch 80th and 87th mins.
2-2, end to end thriller!
Damn, have to be 0-1 then.
It’s already taken but I agree with David Drewitt.
This one has 2-1 written all over it. Goals for Johno and Rodwell
3-1 to the lads a nice repeat of 1973
Safc 1 – 0 City, a repeat
I’m going for 2-1. We’ll score first and everyone will think 1-0 again, they’ll equalise and we’ll grab a last minute winner. Nailed on.
Since we seem to be on a drawing run, I’ll go for 1-1