We know it. They know it. The Charlton game was important but Saturday’s battle of third-top, Sunderland, versus second-top, Luton Town, is immense.
The stakes are perfectly simple. Win and Sunderland go second in Luton’s place, still enjoying a game in hand. Lose and we lose that game-in-hand advantage as the Hatters will have stretched the gap between us to four points.
A draw, disappointing as it would be to fail to improve on the 1-1 outcome at their place, would at least leave things as they are, though a glance at the fixtures shows top-of-the-table Portsmouth have an eminently winnable home tie against Blackpool. Sunderland and Jack Ross have to show they can rise to what will be a high-pressure occasion.
Your task is the guess the score at the Stadium of Light.