Sam Allardyce strikes a sensible balance in his post-match e-mail, accepting the disappointment of another defeat but praising his team, especially the new boys, for a heartily encouraging performance. With all the talent at their disposal, Manchester City were reduced to playacting and blatant timewasting to preserve their lead. Anyone betting on a City victory at cash out betting sites would have been sorely tempted to cash in their winnings rather than count on the cruelly early lead surviving a second half in which Sunderland were the only side looking capable of scoring in the second half …
Monsieur Salut writes: so disappointing to lose after playing well against title-chasing, time-wasting Man City. Sunderland deserved a draw, maybe more. And what a difference for Jan Kirchhoff. Disastrous at Spurs on his debut, pick of the pitch tonight. Decent starts for Kone, Kahzri and N’Doye. Take heart from this gallant defeat Lads. This is Pete Sixsmith‘s instant seven-word verdict. ‘Thought City were rattled’ he says,’and it showed in their constant whining and rolling around’ …
Martin Bates* and Duncan Watmore prepare for a pre-match discussion of macroeconomics and high finance
Salut! Sunderland is proud of the long-running ‘Who are You?’ series. We’ve had people from politics, business, the arts, sport, journalism, religion and loads of other walks of life and, often best of all, solid home-and-away supporters of the clubs concerned.
If someone agrees to do it, whatever their status, we are delighted and grateful. If they decline, that’s understood. If they agree and then go AWOL, ignoring all attempts to contact them, the mood darkens. We were chuffed to find a Manchester City supporter who has excelled in a sport other than football. Questions were invited and sent. Then, silence – with no response to gentle reminders in the usual places. So be it; he may have good reasons, despite his continued activity on social media, for being unable to respond even to the extent of saying ‘simply cannot do after all’.
Who knows? A warm, witty or wise City supporter somewhere out there may read this and, at this late stage, take the Unnamed Defector’s place (it happened last season, too, when Martin Haworth – in the North East but a lifelong City man – volunteered some emergency thoughts) …
Well, we all will be if Duncan Watmore, Fletch and Rodwell were to grab as many goals against Man City on Tuesday night. We could even ship five crackers from the Citeh elite and still win.
David Mooney, one of Monsieur Salut’s confrères at ESPN FC and also in the day job (news editor of news editor at Imagine FM), is a lifelong Manchster City fan. He is a published author on City and the creator of the Blue Moon Podcast. Fittingly, after we saw that sensational strike at the Emirates the other night, not to mention the other one against us at Wembley, he names Yaya Touré as the finest player he has seen in sky blue. He likes the success Abu Dhabi gold has brought his club, misses Maine Road a bit, likes Sunderland well enough whe we’re not winning 1-0 and thinks we may just about escape under Big Sam …
SALUT! SUNDERLAND wishes all readers, contributors, sponsors and advertisers a merry Christmas and a happy, healthy New Year. Thank you for your support …
It is difficult to raise enough enthusiasm for something so trite as Guess the Score in a game most of us expect to lose and perhaps lose heavily.
But let’s try to keep the faith. There’s not much more Hope to be Unable to Stand and we’re all feeling pretty gloomy about our prospects, five points away from a position of safety already and a gap that seems certain to grow.
