Sunderland to get promoted? Five reasons why the Championship dark horses could be the real deal
Sunderland have made a perfect start to the new season, but are they the real deal? Here are five reasons why they could get promoted to the Premier League…
A promotion-calibre defence
Sunderland’s defence has arguably been the most impressive aspect of their game at the start of this season as their success has been built on their immense solidarity at the back.
Looking back historically, the sides previously promoted from the Championship have needed a strong backline to edge out rivals and a team with a leaky backline going up is pretty rare.
Last season, champions Leicester City went through their fair share of turmoil during the run-in as they risked a huge bottle job, but they had the best defence in the Championship as they conceded just 41 goals in their 46 games.
If you can concede fewer than a goal per game, you are onto a winner in a promotion fight and so far, Sunderland are comfortably on track to achieve this target.
The Black Cats have been almost faultless at the back, conceding just one goal in four games. It’s not that opponents have been wasteful either. According to comprehensive stats hub FBRef (who are fantastic, by the way), their expected goals against is just 1.9. So far so very good.
READ: Championship: Six 2024/25 early-season surprises includes lurking Leeds United, perfect Sunderland
Retaining Arsenal and Liverpool target
One of Sunderland’s defenders makes our Championship team of the season so far, while Anthony Patterson has a strong case to be the best goalkeeper in the league.
The 24-year-old has the best save percentage and most clean sheets in the Championship this season as he’s carried on from where he left off last term.
Sunderland did not keep all of their best players in the summer (more on that later), but they did well to retain Patterson, who – according to HITC – attracted interest from Arsenal and Liverpool as the Premier League scoured the market for a new backup goalkeeper.
So far this season, their loss has been Sunderland’s gain as the stocky shot-stopper has provided Regis Le Bris’ side with a great platform to build on.
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Sustainable attacking output
Sunderland have been superb defensively and the same can be said for their work in attacking areas.
Their new-look attack have combined beautifully in their opening four matches, with their tally of ten goals making them the Championship’s joint top scorers with relegated Burnley.
The Black Cats were rightly slammed during the latter stages of last season and the start of this summer following the Michael Beale fiasco as it took them months to appoint a new permanent manager before settling on Le Bris at the end of June. The timing of this appointment left Sunderland at risk of being forced to play catch up on Championship rivals, who had their manager situation set in stone way in advance of the 2024/25 campaign.
However, Le Bris’ limited preparation time has not been to Sunderland’s detriment, so the 48-year-old deserves huge credit for getting his side firing in several departments from opening weekend.
Especially against Sheffield Wednesday, Sunderland have been clinical in front of goal in their first few matches. They are currently overachieving in terms of xG (their tally of 6.1).
This could be cause for concern as their efficiency should naturally decrease as the season progresses, but this is not necessarily the case with Sunderland as they have the fourth-best xG in the Championship. So as long as their decline is slight and not extreme, their attacking output will still keep them in line with the other top echelon sides in the division.
READ: Championship team of the season so far includes Sunderland, Boro quartet and Sheff Utd starlet
The wonders of youth
While Sunderland had struggled to get their manager situation right before the arrival of Le Bris, their academy has been a major success as Patterson, Trai Hume and 17-year-old Chris Rigg are among their homegrown talents currently making waves in the first team.
This partnered with the board placing emphasis on recruiting up-and-coming talents (including 19-year-old Eliezer Mayenda, 21-year-old Romaine Mundle and 18-year-old Jobe Bellingham) ensures Sunderland have the youngest side in the Championship this season as the average of their squad is 23.4.
The performances of Sunderland’s talented youngsters leave the Championship table-toppers at risk of being raided by big-hitters in the Premier League, but the structure of their squad leaves them with plenty of room to grow and this season’s exploits suggest they are way ahead of schedule.
Few had Sunderland down as a contender for promotion before this season as a top-ten finish and flirt with the play-offs would have been considered by most as a successful season.
This means Sunderland can freely attack this season without having the same expectation level as the relegated Premier League sides and Leeds United.
Being an underdog can be a real superpower and the fearlessness their youngsters possess may give Sunderland an advantage over their rivals when squeaky bum time arrives.
No Jack Clarke? No problem…
Sunderland’s early-season achievements become even more impressive when you add in that they have been without former star man Clarke for two of their four victories.
The talented winger put his Spurs misery behind him during his stellar spell with Sunderland and he’s consistently been among the Championship’s standout performers in the last two seasons.
The Black Cats would have likely been in a relegation battle last season had it not been for Clarke’s brilliance, so neutrals could have been forgiven for assuming they would drop off when Ipswich Town bought the 23-year-old for £15m plus add-ons in the summer.
However, not even the exit of Clarke can get Sunderland down as without him, they have earned wins over Burnley and Portsmouth.
The task of replacing Clarke was never going to be easy, but Mundle has magnificently stepped up in his absence and scored twice in his last two matches before the break.
Like Clarke, Mundle previously had a spell at Spurs and is now coming good for Sunderland in the Championship, while 27-year-old Patrick Roberts – who resembles a wily veteran in this side – has also improved his output on the right flank.
Don’t get me wrong, there will come times this season when Clarke is sorely missed. But his former teammates are taking responsibility and have significantly reduced the potential impact of his exit and Mundle could not be timing a potential breakout year any better.
