Martin O’Neill hoped for a triumphant return to Villa Park. In his post-match e-mail, he contemplates the sort of match any away team should expect to win. Sunderland withstood Villa’s somewhat frantic assaults on Mignolet’s goal, had ample chances to grab the three points and believed they’d done so when Bendtner hit the back of the net, only to be ruled offside – wrongly says MON, who otherwise overlooks some painfully sloppy distribution to praise the overall performance. …
How can a team score three at Man City and then go the whole of April without managing another? Well we have only next Saturday to put that right after yet another 0-0 draw, this time in a game we might easily have lost for failing to take any of the good chances we created.
The Wolves bore draw needs no further comment, and gets none.
The build-up to today’s game at Aston Villa, vital to them but let’s not underestimate its importance for more than one reason to us, has been fascinating.
Image: Gene Hunt. No known Wearside casualties
What are the links between the world’s longest running, still running soap Coronation Street and Sunderland?
The question itself, which has been posed by the Wearside woman behind a massively successful Corrie blog, will have some expat readers of Salut! Sunderland weeping nostalgic teardrops into the yellow fizz they make do with in place of real beer, and others reaching for the sick bucket.
Right. I have decided, despite the view expressed here after the damp squib of SAFC v Wolves, that our unimpressive form in the past two games can have nothing to do with Salut! Sunderland running a ‘Guess the Score’ competition. So here’s another …
The editor of Salut! Sunderland has a word for the captains of industry who close good, hard-working businesses like Shildon Wagon Works and the Evening Despatch. Unfortunately, that word would probably get us banned. Pete Sixsmith is also cross about the demise of evening papers, especially football pinks and greens; he’s crosser still about the end of Ceefax …
(Image courtesy of Ben Sutherland)
There were several delicious aspects to last night’s richly entertaining game in which Chelsea beat Barcelona 1-0 to give themselves a sporting chance of reaching the Champions League final …
Stuart Jinks, Jinksy* to pals, has been this way before, standing his Villa fan corner with admirable resolve in the various Bent and Bigger Club spats we’ve had. I expected some harsh words about the way things have gone at his club. I wasn’t quite prepared for this …
The only certainty among the four clubs mentioned above is Reading, promoted thanks to the 1-0 win over Forest. Southampton look set to join them but may still have a little work to do while Wigan’s sensational recent wins have not yet ensured survival. Pete Sixsmith looks at the likely comings and goings and shamelessly allows his preferences to be dictated by geography, politics and beer …
We really shouldn’t exaggerate. There are no reports, at least not yet, of exiled Sunderland fans in the West Country making their way to the suicide hotspot of the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Chemists on Wearside have not warned police of disturbing increases in demand for over-the-counter products that can cause death.
And Monsieur Salut has made no attempt to tear out what remains of his hair.
All the same, the news we did not wish to hear was that Martin O’Neill not only admires the footballing abilities of Karl Henry, which could just about be forgiven, but wants to bring him to Sunderland, which could not. Or, indeed, that his sights are set on other characters now playing at Aston Villa, West Brom and Henry’s club, Wolverhampton Wanderers.