EPL Team Profile: Sunderland
The formal name of the club is Sunderland Association Footall Club, or Sunderland AFC.
Sunderland are referred to by their nicknames, the Black Cats, or the Mackems.
They were founded in 1879, as Sunderland and District Teachers.
Their home venue is the Stadium of Light, with a seating capacity of 49,000.
The owner of the squad is Ellis Short, the Chirman, Niall Quinn, and the manager, Steve Bruce.
The Black cats finished 13th on the League table last season. They have been in and out of the Premiership, with a best performance of seventh place, two years running.
In their two matches played so far this year, the Mackems have lost 1-0 to West Bromwich Albion, while holding Birmingham to a 2-2 draw, in a mtach they should have won, barring the exit of their red-carded captain, Lee Cattermole, thereby reducing them to 10 men, for half of the match.
Pre-season Review:
Chairman Niall Quinn has in recent times invested a lot of money in building the squad. And quite surprisingly, Sunderland are yet to live up to their promise, despite the fund injection, the backing of their fans, and a more than competent coach.
Sunderland comprise a talented bunch of players: Mignolet, Bramble, Onuoha, Richardson, Mensah, Cattermole, Al-Muhammadi, Malbranque, Henderson, Bent, Campbell, Bardsley, Carson, Da Silva, Zenden, Welbeck, Riveros, and Waghorn.
In Darren bent, the Black Cats are fortunate to have a prolific goal scorer; Bent netted 24 in his first season with Sunderland, last year.
Yet Sunderland could only finish 13th on the Premiership ladder.
Bent will no doubt want to continue finding the back of the net this season but he will be without he strike partner Kenwyne Jones, who has now left the club.
Bent will miss his hunting partner, Kenwune Jones, at the head of the pack; Jones has been sold off to Stoke City.
Sunderland have Manchester United’s Danny Welbeck on loan, and he could be the focus of attention. After a successful season with Preston last year, Welbeck will want to stamp his credentials in top flight English football.
Apart from Welbeck, Sunderland have got Nedun Onouha on loan, while Mensah, also on loan, will continue with the squad, this season. The defence line up will be bolstered by the arrival of Ahmed Al-Muhammadi, Titus Bramble and Marcos Angeleri.
Summer signings include midfielder Cristian Riveros and ‘keeper Mignolet. Apart from Jones, Lorik Cana is another player who has left on a big money transfer.
On paper, at least, Sunderland look capable of a top half finish. But it will take some doing, getting there. With the competition also getting stronger, they are unlikely to do much better than they did, last season.
About the Author (Author Profile)
Jinxatious is the Chief Editor of SportingAttitude.com
An avid writer, on an eclectic range of subjects, he brings to bear editorial experience garnered with a national newspaper in South-East Asia. He also has sportscasting experience, as a cricket commentator, and his passion for sport extends beyond Cricket, to Football, Tennis, and Olympic Sports.
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