LEE CATTERMOLE is fit to play his first game since February, but whether Paolo Di Canio turns to him to kickstart Sunderland's season remains unlikely. The Black Cats' tough-tackling midfielder has been battling back to fitness after knee surgery and a little set-back on his road to recovery he received playing for the Under-21s last month. But Cattermole is understood to be ready to play again should Di Canio need him to in his attempts to lead Sunderland to a first Premier League win of the season. Di Canio had been looking to offload last season's captain before the end of the transfer window but he has remained on the club's books. There has been talk of a loan move to the Championship, although the former England Under-21s midfielder who attracted interest from Liverpool not too long ago would be reluctant to drop out of the top-flight. Sunderland play Arsenal at the Stadium of Light this weekend when a further defeat from their opening four league games could leave them bottom of the pile. Di Canio is confident things will turn around but he was never able to persuade director of football Roberto De Fanti to land the English type midfielder he had been looking for before the transfer deadline. And while Cattermole has his critics for his disciplinary problems on the pitch, there is no disguising that when he is on song he has exactly the sort of tenacity and ball-playing ability Di Canio has been looking to add to the Sunderland midfield. The 25-year-old, a £6m signing from Wigan four years ago, has not played since having to go off injured at half-time when Arsenal last visited Wearside on February 9. The Gunners won that day 1-0. Di Canio did not completely rule out Cattermole returning to action in a Sunderland shirt if he remained at the club after the closure of the transfer window. He has been given the number 33 shirt, so is included in the Premier League squad, and Di Canio is now contemplating working on ways of involving him again. Cattermole, whose friendships with some of the old guard the manager has been moving on has not helped his cause, could do with staying injury-free and available. He was a favourite under Martin O'Neill and Steve Bruce, but has not played under Di Canio having suffered a recurrence of his knee trouble in the weeks building up to the Sunderland boss' appointment.
He's the type of player Wenger hates playing against, cause he'll be in their faces. Wenger expects teams to sit back and admire their fancy football. He'll certainly ruffle a few feathers if he plays!
I will continue to keep saying this but we have missed Catts and suffered without his steel in midfield. He could well be a key player for us and PDC now and hope he makes the bench at tgd weekend at least. I for one think this is terrific news.
Tw bits I picked out of the article: How do you know??? (Not You Teesside - whoever wrote the article) - I have seen NOTHING from Di Canio or Cattermole to suggest that Di Canio didn't want him - I've only seen paper talk and media garbage. Even the squad number thing that all the papers put so much on (Cabral getting 6 and Cattermole relegated to 33) turned out to be PLAYERS DECISION according to the boss. It's not like he was out gambling and drinking in the public eye like Bardsley and Kilgallon is it? Hope he gets a shot - don;t rush him back - play him for half hour here and there to build match fitness but don't injure the lad again as I think he could be very important to us - I still reckon, had he been available, Palace wouldn't have beaten us
Let's be honest though, the last 10 times Catts has said he was fit...plays 10 minutes, knees ****ed, 3 months out...
http://www.newspostleader.co.uk/spo...and-future-if-he-abides-by-my-rules-1-6044137 PAOLO DI CANIO insists Lee Cattermole must abide by his rules if he is to force his way back into first-team contention. Cattermole has been handed an olive branch by Sunderland head coach Di Canio after returning to full training with the rest of the squad, although tomorrow’s visit of Arsenal will come too soon for him. The 25-year-old, who has lost the Sunderland captaincy to John O’Shea this season, looked to be on his way out of the Stadium of Light during the summer after the Black Cats were ready to offload the midfielder, who has played just 60 minutes of first-team football since last November due to a knee problem. But Di Canio believes a fully-fit Cattermole could be a huge asset for Sunderland and has been encouraged by the early signs from the former Middlesbrough man on the training field. The head coach, though, has warned that Cattermole cannot afford to let his standards slip and fall foul of the Italian’s no-nonsense disciplinary regime. Di Canio told the Echo: “I don’t have prejudice and now that he’s back with us, I treat him like the most important player in the squad. “But he has to follow my regime, he has to stay in my circle. “If he is going to jump out, he can’t stay with me. “If he understands this – like he does at the moment – he’s more than welcome. “We need a British guy with this fantastic energy and desire. “I’m here to do the best course for my players, my fans and the club. “If I have to close one eye sometimes, I do it, if I think it’s necessary for the cause. “But he has to stay with my principles, otherwise I don’t think you’ll do a great job. “I was clear with him. “At the moment, it’s easy to feel enthusiasm because he smells he can be important for the squad. “He must extend this desire even when the day will come when he can be selected, and I don’t select him. “That will be a crucial moment. It depends on him.” Cattermole lasted just 45 minutes for the Sunderland Under-21s last month in an aborted attempt to return from his knee problem. The injury has been the latest in a series of sustained periods on the sidelines which have dogged Cattermole ever since he moved to the Stadium of Light four years ago. But he is now part of a group of Sunderland players doing extra sessions after training to strengthen their core muscles – in Cattermole’s case the back problem which has continued to affect him throughout his Black Cats career. Di Canio added: “Is it (the injury record) because of bad luck or not being in the habit of training hard and looking after himself? “In the last few days, he’s sent a message to those close to him that he’s very happy because he doesn’t feel any pain in his back. “We have a group of players who have two hours a week extra for the back, hamstrings and neck to prevent injuries. Pro-action is better than reaction. “Before (Di Canio’s reign), do you think he used to do this? Two minutes, shower and away in the car because it was the habit. “He’s got no pain now and he can train. “Last week, he had a training session with us with 10 x 300m, eight x 800m and although he had general stiffness, there was nothing wrong with his back. “You can’t do that if you’re having three or four days off. He’s 25, not 38.” sounds promising
Olive branch? HE HASN'T DONE ANYTHING WRONG!!!!!!!!!!! Those are simply the rules all must abide by. I'm sick to the back teeth of Catts being portrayed as some kind of naughty school boy or villain since Paolo took over. There's been no evidence of anything! He's been injured for christ sake. Of Course he's lost the captaincy, he hasn't played enough to keep it. Bloody Press man!
Cattermole does need to keep himself out of trouble, I cant see him lasting long in PDCs team if he gets caught keying cars in Newcastle again (he was found guilty and fined). Good news if he (Catts) can keep fit as PDC thinks he can. Cattermole can be a good player, but always seems to get an injury when just getting back into his stride.
I agree about him needing to keep his nose clean, goes without saying. But my point is all his misbehaviours happened under previous managers and the press have used this against him in his time under Paolo's tenure. He hasn't put a foot wrong.... Yet. He deserves the same clean slate everybody else has and I'm chuffed to say he's got it regardless of what the Jackanory Press have tried to say.
further proof of how the standards of training has improved under pdc, it must have been pretty crap before his arrival
