Newcastle United v Sunderland: mildly important game, prize Guess the Score
Biggest in history – and you see Jake wondering about that above – it may or may not be, but we do know rather a lot rides on Newcastle United v Sunderland.
Two of the three sides battling for the one obvious position of safety meet with all the baggage of not only a nerve-shredding relegation scrap but a long tradition of enmity and rivalry given the added spice of opposing managers who, shall we say, have not always got along too well.
View from the NW Corner: ideal opportunity to move Sunderland forward
Malcolm Dawson writes……off the field activities have dominated the news coming out of all three of the North East’s big …
NUFC and Middlesbrough over there, Bolton and Blackpool over here
rambling around on a weekend
We might have another blank weekend but it’s only two weeks since my last relegation watch so, even though things are hotting up, what with Norwich drawing with Citeh and Rafa Benitez taking over the horse punchers after the dismally drawn out sacking of Steve McLaren (and this in the week Mr. Ashley was warned he might be held in contempt for his failure to meet MPs who want to discuss the treatment of his employees), it’s too early to go back there.
Sunderland, Newcastle, Norwich, Aston Villa. Whose manager is best suited to task?
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As we all know, the Tyne-Wear derby is more than just a question of whether SAFC can make it seven wins in a row. Premier League survival could depend on the outcome.
Steve McClaren has gone. The unprofessionalism he showed in handling the media in the death throes of his Newcastle United managerial career may have been caused by the stress of knowing the axe was poised above his head, so maybe he deserves our sympathy.
And the smart money – only money – is on Rafa Benitez, another manager with a history of strops with the press, to replace him. He may find St James’ Park “less sexy than Real” according to a Belgian site I came across, but we can hardly say he’s a useless manager.
From Arsenal and Galatasaray to SAFC: a belated welcome to Emmanuel Eboué
He is a defender with experience, quality and commitment. He plays in a position where, despite Yedlin’s recent improvement, we’ve struggled. And until the end of the season at least, he’s ours.
Salut! Sunderland welcomes Emmanuel Eboué and wishes him well at the Stadium of Light, however long or short his stay.
Norwich, Newcastle, Sunderland, even Villa: Sixer assesses the battle for fourth bottom
Not forgetting ….
The Norwich-based Eastern Daily Press is inevitably getting as worked up about City’s prospects of survival as we are about our own. Black Cats vs Canaries vs Magpies. Which creature will prevail? So the EDP came knocking at the door and asked Pete Sixsmith how he thought the relegation battle would finish. The questions and answers presuppose that Villa are relegation certs so let’s hope they haven’t a Leicester-style revival up their sleeves …
Sunderland, Adam Johnson and a sad but necessary exit for Margaret Byrne
Margaret Byrne has resigned as chief executive of Sunderland AFC in recognition of her flawed handling of the Adam Johnson affair.
When Johnson’s trial ended with a further conviction, on top of the Guilty pleas already entered, and with it the likelihood of a significant jail term, we reproduced SAFC’s statement and called it a “dignified response”. As far as it went, that was an accurate description. No one should be pre-judged; every accused person is entitled under our civilised procedures to the presumption of innocence until proved otherwise.
Sunderland 3-2 Everton: now Big Sam’s seniors must emulate the Under 21s
Pete Sixsmith, much in demand, found time to catch Sunderland’s heartening return to the top of the Under 21s league. After recent self-imposed distractions, what a pleasure it is for Salut! Sunderland to get back to reporting on SAFC …
How Newcastle won the cup, fuelling an Arsenal grievance lasting 84 years
Rightly, wrongly or clumsily, Salut! Sunderland allowed a splendid piece of whimsy from Pete Sixsmith, which also offered serious discussion of the steady progress of Stoke City as a well-run Premier League club, to degenerate into another ugly spat over Ryan Shawcross’s 2011 challenge on Aaron Ramsey.
But, as a new study reminds us, the history of Arsenal grievance and victimhood goes back a long way …