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It wasn’t the biggest shock of our 2025/2026 season so far. Perhaps it was always asking a lot for Sunderland to end what had been an objectively impressive week of results by depriving Pep Guardiola’s Big Blue Machine of valuable points in the Premier League title race, but after Arsenal’s Saturday afternoon slip combined with […]
5 days ago | 0 reads
It was the second season of the magic carpet ride, and the relative success of eras like this one is always viewed at the time through the lens of where we had come from. Just over twelve months earlier, Sunderland had sat bottom of the Championship, and the Niall Quinn chairmanship was waiting to get […]
5 days ago | 0 reads
Chris and Martin are joined by BBC Radio Newcastle’s Nick Barnes to discuss yesterday’s game at the Etihad, and the implications ahead of this weekend’s derby. The lads covered: • Reinildo’s injury and the team that started against City • Is a lack of depth in midfield a concern heading into AFCON? • Was our […]
5 days ago | 0 reads
We’re recording a Q&A Podcast tomorrow morning, and we want your questions on all things SAFC related – from this last run of games to what lies ahead! Drop your questions in the comments section below or email [email protected] and we’ll do our best to answer them!
6 days ago | 0 reads
Ballard vs Haaland Facing up against the toughest individual opponent in the league in the form of Erling Haaland, I think that Ballard in particular could leave the pitch with his head held high yesterday. Haaland barely had a sniff at goal throughout the match, with one illuminating stat showing that the Nordic giant had […]
6 days ago | 0 reads
As someone who generally tries to find the positives in everything, my attitude leading into the game was that Sunderland could – largely due to the brilliant results against Bournemouth and Liverpool – go into the Manchester City game free of pressure, knowing that the result would be relatively inconsequential. I have to admit, though, […]
6 days ago | 0 reads
Gav says… Positive play at points I thought we were excellent until the sucker punch that came from the first Manchester City goal. Yes, we didn’t dominate the ball at all, but our game plan was solid and for a good half an hour there, I thought we stood a chance of getting a positive […]
6 days ago | 0 reads
1992 may have been deemed Queen Elizabeth II’s infamous annus horribilis, but for Sunderland’s own head of state it was the year before that looked like it would take its toll. Bob Murray, later to become CBE in the 2003 New Year Honours and a Sir in the Queen’s own 2010 Birthday Honours, endured a […]
6 days ago | 0 reads
Sunderland’s recruitment across the summer was hugely impressive, as the scouting network spread its reach across European leagues to bring in a mix of young, promising, sought-after talent and much-needed top-level experience. But recruiting players from abroad brings its own complications. Premier League squad rules dictate that each team can only have a maximum of […]
6 days ago | 0 reads
Well, I think we all kinda expected Sunderland to have a little less oomph given the risk of going thundering around the pitch, so we aren’t quite as deflated as you might think after a 3-0 loss… join Gav, Jonny and Bomber as they react to a defeat away at Manchester City! On the agenda: […]
6 days ago | 1 read
Robin Roefs: 7/10 Couldn’t do anything about any of the goals but made a couple of good saves and used the ball well when we were in possession. Trai Hume: 5/10 Had to start on the left today due to Reinildo’s absence and struggled, got done multiple times by a bit of skill or selling […]
6 days ago | 1 read
Ben Metcalf: 7/10 Didn’t have chance with either goal, with City having free efforts on goal but made a couple of good saves, with one really good one after a counter attack in the first half, and was tidy with his feet. Jenson Jones: 6/10 Had a difficult game against a tricky winger, with the […]
6 days ago | 0 reads
We’ve lost the last seven against City and haven’t beaten them on the road in any competition since 1998 – but that didn’t stop Jonny, Andrew & Chris from getting together to talk about how much we have a chance of taking something in today’s game! On today’s agenda: All of this and more – […]
7 days ago | 2 reads
Martin Wanless predicts… Score prediction: Man City 2 Sunderland 2 Sunderland’s first goalscorer: Le Fee After Wednesday’s trip to Anfield, it’s another excellent game for us to tackle. I wonder whether we’ll rotate the squad a little – the obvious suspension threat to Sadiki and Xhaka is something that will surely come into the manager’s […]
7 days ago | 0 reads
It had been a whirlwind few days for everyone associated with Sunderland AFC. Whilst still a big deal, a managerial departure is not exactly unusual, but when the manager that leaves is one of the most charismatic and divisive figures in the game, it sends all media outlets into a frenzy. Roy Keane’s departure from […]
7 days ago | 1 read
After an excellent performance at Anfield, Sunderland’s attention now turns to a challenge which, on paper at least, is similar to that which we faced on Wednesday at Liverpool. Regis Le Bris changed things up in midweek with Trai Hume playing a wide midfield role to good effect and Brian Brobbey leading the line well […]
7 days ago | 1 read
Saturday 6th December 2025 Manchester City v Sunderland – Premier League Etihad Stadium Kick-Off: 15:00 Tickets & Match Coverage Tickets: Tickets are sold out. TV/Stream: Full live match coverage is unavailable in the UK. Radio: Full live match commentary available via BBC Radio Newcastle (not online) Don’t forget to follow the blow-by-blow account of the […]
7 days ago | 0 reads
Man City currently sit second in the Premier League – how would you summarise your season so far? I think it’s been fairly mixed. We started the season with two losses in our first three games before the first international break, but after we returned we started to get back to our best. We’ve had […]
7 days ago | 0 reads
What a special team we have right now. In years gone by, a Sunderland side falling two goals behind at home to two eminently avoidable goals – on the back of a poor defeat away from home – would slump to another disappointing loss or worse crumble entirely to humiliation. Not so with the current […]
7 days ago | 1 read
Joining us to chat about last night’s performance from Sunderland at Anfield against Liverpool is It’s the Onuoha derby! After Sunderland’s draw at Anfield we have the simple task of heading to the Etihad to take on a City side who are chasing down Arsenal – so we speak to former City & Sunderland defender […]
8 days ago | 1 read
At the start of every game this season so far, I’ve thought, “this will tell us something about where we are, and how we can handle this division.” In the beginning, that was an obvious thing to think. How will we do against established Premier League opposition like West Ham? Can we respond to the […]
8 days ago | 2 reads
Ciaran McKenna says… This is a difficult decision — one that’s definitely been at the back of my mind for the last couple of games. On one hand, you could bench or drop them totally, prioritising the derby. This is tempting as they’re both so important to the team and how we operate and having […]
8 days ago | 1 read
After another impressive team performance at Anfield on Wednesday night there were several candidates for our own man-of-the-match from the 1-1 draw with Liverpool. You could take your pick from our defenders and midfielders really, but one thing for certain is that Dan Ballard added to his list of impressive performances which stretches back to […]
8 days ago | 0 reads
Rangers arrived at Roker Park following a chastening 4-1 defeat at home to bottom-of-the-table Charlton the previous Saturday. It was a surprise result and I thought it could easily work against us as they looked to bounce back. I was both disappointed but secretly pleased to learn that the young and hugely talented Rodney Marsh […]
8 days ago | 1 read
If Dan Neil is about to depart the club when the January transfer window opens, it will mark the end of a tumultuous period in the club’s history in which he has played a significant role. There is a photograph of a young Dan Neil in the Wembley crowd on the day Sunderland took on […]
8 days ago | 0 reads