Sunderland finally
secured their place in the Premier League for 2016/17 with a
comprehensive 3-0 defeat of Everton at the Stadium of Light in their
penultimate fixture, but manager Sam Allardyce is determined to avoid
another relegation fight next season. The Black Cats failed to win
any of their opening eight fixtures of the 2015/16 campaign, leading
to the resignation of former boss Dick Advocaat and the appointment
of Sam Allardyce on a two-year contract.
A five-game losing
streak at the end of 2015 once again put a tenth consecutive season
in the Premier League in doubt, but Sunderland finished the season
with just one defeat in their last 11 games. Allardyce was the first
to acknowledge that his side were heavily reliant on former England
striker Jermain Defoe, whose 15 Premier League goals made all the
difference in the relegation struggle.
However, Defoe is now
33, Fabio Borini has been transformed into a winger, rather than an
out-and-out centre forward and Steven Fletcher, who spent the second
half of last season on loan at Marseille, has accepted that this
Sunderland career is over. It’s no surprise that ‘Big Sam’ has
spoken openly about his desire to add another striker to his squad
and West Ham striker Diafra Sakho is likely to be high on the list of
transfer targets he’s due to discuss with owner Ellis Short.
Sunderland have won the
League Championship twice and the F.A. Cup twice, as well as
finishing runner-up in the F.A. Cup and League Cup twice apiece.
However, their only major trophy since World War II remains the F.A.
Cup in 1973 when, as a Second Division team, they recorded a shock
1-0 win over Leeds United. Sam Allardyce has never been relegated and
has said that the Black Cats must learn from their mistakes this
season so, with consolidation the name of the game, 1,500/1 for the
Premier League title is unlikely to see many takers. However,
stranger things have happened, haven’t they?
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