from a bad start to the season i think we all knew it was just a 'blip' and that the wins would follow, the good thing (to me) was the lack of negativity, at least on this site, can't say about any others. pretty sure plenty got a wee bit jittery in the transfer window but many expected most of it, our team had been playing good football and were attracting interest, would have been shocked if there were no rumours...couple of good players were allowed to leave with gooch being the 'shock' of the window and this time i know they all went with the best wishes of the fans even if one was 'unwanted'. so, as it stands now we are nicely in 4th and have not had a bad game (hoping i am not putting a jinx on saturday, i remember last season too well) although a couple have not been at our best. still some of the new lads to see 'properly' but those that have had starts and been able to get used to the squad have been very good, those that we have seen little of have certainly looked like they will fit in and do well when they get a chance...hard to fit them in with the current team playing well but even when picked for the U23's to give them game time they do not let the club down, really looking forward to watching these lads grow with the club, while there could be criticisms for some there are not enough to warrant mentioning in full, i always expected mistakes as the lads learn their trade but they are learning and that is the main thing. hard to call them the 'old hands' really but they have carried on where they left off last season, clarke, roberts, pritchard and also those like dan neil who we tend to forget that he himself is still a young lad...each and every one has played his part so i feel the first quarter (nearly) has shown that we are in for another good football season, expect some 'blips' of course but overall i am sure we will be happy at the end of the season and i think we will enjoy another play-off battle at the very least.
Very pleased with the start and the team. I still think getting into the playoffs will constitute a good season. And I hope we win them this time.
I think we look great and in my opinion we'll go up this season. We've got the quality and the grit and determination to go with it. If we don't then that's ok, we'll do some fine tuning and go up the season after.
Very pleased with the start, with a bit of luck we could easily have picked up points in the three games we've lost and be in the automatic places. As it stands 4th is good, I can't see Preston holding on. They generally start well then fade and I think the same will happen this season as well. Ipswich and Leicester lead, but I think both are getable, I'd love to see how Ipswich cope with a bad run, though I think Leicester are tougher. Other than not being clinical enough at times, especially goals from centre forward, we've generally played well and created chances. Get the finishing sorted out and we'll be a real threat.
The only thing that worries me slightly is our 6 wins are against sides currently 24,23,22,21,20 and 10th, our 3 defeats 2,3 and 8th.
That's a good point mate, but I don't think we deserved to lose any of those 3 games. To date, we haven't been outplayed or outclassed by anyone. We have assembled an excellent squad, big enough to be able to cope with injuries and suspensions. I wonder how Ipswich will cope in similar circumstances? Leicester look the standout team so far, but we're not far behind.
Good start, few defeats in which we probably should have won never mind just taken something. Looking a very strong squad, strength in depth as good as any team if not better 10 games in look very capable of playoff spot & not just sneaking in last day, yes we won last night, but we need to sort home form 2 hoke defeats already, see previous comment should have won, young players hopefully will learn if we do we can push for top 2 Massive month, first game won, end of October we will be in a position to assess if were going to push for top two or realistically be playoff side....might not be in top two...but ive a feeling end of month we will have seen enough to push for top two... especially as these young lads should only get better...the potential is unreal, singling out Jobe, looked bit raw at first, especially Blackburn in that midfield role, same role now & hes bossing, unreal lads just turned 18 both talent & physically...hes going to be a top player. Dan Neil too...laugh hes the older head in there...just hes doing a great job controlling the middle
Interesting point that. Think we have started well and playing great stuff. Still need to be more aggressive at home IMO. Also, the depth at CM is a worry. I feel the same players have played high intensity ever minute and last night a few of them were feeling it, making reference to having a knock, limping, shaking their leg to try and run it off. We do have a couple who should be back soon and that will be welcome. Definitely need a number 9 to score. Could be the difference that and give us that dimension. Think we will run the play offs close again. Top 2 out of reach, just my opinion.
Good so far, Preston wont even be in a play off position at the end of the season and we would have been 3 points better off if we had taken our chances down there. We will be automatically promoted this season Defenders all looking committed, lot of good players to come back also, Ekwah, Alese, Cirkin, and we havn't seen Mayenda or Pembele yet. Squad looks very strong.
I'm just enjoying the ride, been a long time since i've enjoyed being a Sunderland fan as much as i have been these last 12 months or so.
I would say that we are at the work in progress stage. We've come a long way, even from last season, however I feel that we can still improve. To be honest I struggle to pick our best side, and for the right reasons, we have genuine competition in most positions and can play a variety of formations. I think I will just sit back and enjoy the football that we play.and see where we finish the season.
Good start to the season, still dont think we have been close to our best yet - once we hit top gear we will be very hard to beat. After this international break we will need to rotate the squad a bit to keep players fresh as we dont want to run out of steam towards end of season
I thought Mowbray would have made Subs a bit earlier last night with the Boro game being so close. Jobe is some player, its easy to forget he is only 18, I was going to say the International break will be good for him, but he will probably be playing for England at some level
1 postion lower but 2 points better off and a +4 goal difference improvement. I'd call that a fairly solid start 2022/23 table after 10 matches
Really happy with the style of play, the commitment and the quality players in the squad. Bigger picture is the squad worth today compared to what this owner bought - it’s light years difference and done in less than 2 years. Clearly something is working at academy level and in recruitment. If we can get one of the new forwards into some form there’s a very good chance of a top 4 finish. Burstow will be a different player once he gets a goal but Ive a feeling Rusyn might be our main striker this season.
Very good start in my opinion. Considering some of the players landed late in the window we have hit the ground running. No play off hangover. Think we are still playing lovely football, yet I senss we have a couple of gears more. It feels like we are playing in bursts in matches, but then we are learning to manage games from the front. We are looking like good leaders of games now, like last night for example. Clean sheets are coming. Huggins looks a massive bonus. Ba has broken through and looks a proper player. Jobe is way beyond what I thought, and way beyond what the Brum coaches told me. Clarke, Hume, Neil, Ballard picking up where they left off. Pritch and ONien leading with experience. One thing I would say is look at the table below us. Crazy how many teams are pushing. Seems like a really competitive league again. Bring it on though, I wouldnt swap for any other team.
It's only 10 games but already I'm thinking Leicester/ Ipswich read Burnley/ Sheffield United from last season with a shed load of teams vying for the play-off places. Hoping after this international break some of our nearly fit players are available so we can rotate the squad to keep them all fitter for longer unlike last season when we ran out of legs a bit. Our style of play hasn't changed and we seem to be sharing the goals around like last night taking a bit of pressure from JC. Don't loose against the Boro and we can have a relaxing fortnight before the rest of a difficult October.
As if we were above Burnley after 10 games man wtf?! On topic, very happy with the season so far. Top 2 is absolutely a realistic goal although I think Leicester have the title sown up. Ipswich and Preston are nothing special, no reason at all we can't finish above them. Should have beaten them both earlier in the season, really.
