By Chris Young VITO MANNONE says Sunderland can prey upon Norwich City’s Carrow Road jitters this weekend. Sunderland have struggled to make the most of home advantage against their fellow strugglers at the Stadium of Light over the last three months after failing to secure victories against Norwich, Hull and Crystal Palace. But the pressure will be on Norwich to pick up maximum points on their own territory on Saturday when they face a crunch relegation showdown against the Black Cats. The stakes are high for Norwich, particularly with the Canaries’ final four games being a daunting run against Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal. And with Sunderland proving to be far more adept on their travels than at the Stadium of Light under Gus Poyet, goalkeeper Vito Mannone hopes the Wearsiders can capitalise on their trip to East Anglia by securing a first win in four Premier League outings. Mannone told the Echo: “It suits us playing away from home because when we have the ball we can control it, and no-one likes it. The home crowd gets nervous. “It’s something that happens to us even at home because the crowd really want you to do well. “We understand that and try to push and push and push. “But sometimes that’s not easy because teams come here and put 11 bodies behind the ball. “It will be the reverse situation on Saturday though, so hopefully we can make the most of that.” With the onus on Chris Hughton’s Norwich side to attack, Mannone expects Sunderland to have more space in which to operate than they enjoyed against Palace. And if Poyet’s side can reproduce the same hunger and application shown last weekend, ex-Arsenal goalkeeper Mannone believes Sunderland have every chance of securing what would be three crucial points in the survival battle. Mannone, who kept a clean sheet against Norwich in the close-fought goalless draw at the Stadium of Light back in December, added: “The next game is another massive one and maybe, the opposition will come out a little bit more because they need to win. “We’ll probably find more spaces. “We just need to play at the same standard. That’s really the main target for us.” Sunderland have visited Carrow Road in the Premier League twice, losing 2-1 in each of the last two seasons.
No Fletcher is good And so if we could Get our bird-like noses in front, Fairly early doors It would help our cause And keep ourselves well in the hunt, The longer without A goal, then the doubt Begins to creep ominously, From players to fans As the pre-match plans Start falling precariously, If you park the bus Without any fuss Determined to take one point home, Then I fear we´ll fail And to no avail Will huff and puff in ´Delia Dome´, But if you play To win on the day Then chances will improve tenfold, And anything then Could really happen Where fortune may favour the bold. May the bravest and the best win!
GUS Poyet says he will box clever when Sunderland take on Norwich City at Carrow Road tomorrow. The Black Cats’ boss is determined to send his players in search of victory in the relegation six-pointer against a side sitting just three places and four points above the Wearsiders in the Premier League table. And the Uruguayan believes that Sunderland have what it takes to notch their fourth away win of the season and bolster their escape bid from the bottom three. But he will not throw caution to the wind and says – just as in last week’s game against Crystal Palace – that Sunderland have to be smart and accept victories cannot be guaranteed. “We will set up to win the game and I hope that people will see within the first few minutes that we have gone to Norwich looking for all three points,” he told the Echo. “But we have to be intelligent too and see how the game works out. “We are going to be positive and we are going to look to try to win the game – we need wins at this stage of the season – and hopefully we can get one this weekend. “If we are playing well and in a position to snatch the three points in the final stages of the game, then I will have a decision to make. “We are at the stage of the season where we need three points and if I think we can get them, then I will go for it. “But we have to assess it by what happens in the game. “We might put in a terrible performance – it might be that an away point is a good one for us on the day – just as it was for Crystal Palace last weekend. “If that’s the case, then we have to look to take a point at least because at least that way we’re taking something from the game. “I want to win the game, but we have to be smart too.” Poyet believes this weekend’s match will be equally as tense for both teams, considering what is at stake. Norwich can go seven points clear of Sunderland with a victory; but the Black Cats will only be one point behind the Canaries, with three games in hand, should they win. “I think the pressure on both sides is the same,” Poyet shrugged, “There’s no difference, in my view. “We can all find things to be frightened of, we can all find things to encourage us – all it suggests to me is that there will not be too many goals. “Both teams will look to be strong defensively, but a bit of luck helps in games sometimes. “This season, we’ve had away games where we might have won easily – against West Ham and Aston Villa – but we didn’t. “So we have to hope that this time we have a bit more luck. “We need to start well, defend well, not make mistakes, impose our football and, when it is difficult, we have to fight, because although it might be tight, there will be chances.”
The pressure is all on Norwich now for this one, they need 8-10 points from their next 4 games, or they're going to be in trouble. They might as well not have a last 4 games of the season, they've got an outside chance of picking up a point against Arsenal at Carrow Rd, and maybe if Moyes plays Cleverley they might pick up something at Old Trafford but they're massively odds on to lose all of the last four. Norwich will go all out attack in this game, they have to. If Gus is clever with his tactics I can see a Sunderland win.
I'm not so sure they will. Thing is, the teams just above us know fine well that all they need is a draw to keep us below them. Sunderland need wins, draws are not much use to us.
And for anyone who still believes there's no such thing as a 'six pointer' that should help. In fact there are still 16 genuine six pointers let of which 5 involve Sunderland. It's still difficult to predict the bottom 3 and impossible if you throw in injuries, red cards & dodgy referees.
I get what you're saying mate, but considering Norwich's last 4 games which I'm sure they are realistic about getting no points from, they can't afford draws with essentially four games remaining in the season for them. A draw would keep the same distance between you and them obviously but after that game, Sunderland have 10 games remaining, half of which are very winnable games the other half much tougher. Norwich have just one game that they can look at and actually expect 3 points after Sunderland. It could all be ****e to be fair and they lose their next 4 then beat us, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal and pull off a great escape but on paper I reckon they'll be looking at anything less than 3 points is a failure on their part this weekend.
After last week's shocking display I can't see Norwich sitting back and going for a draw. Their fans turned on them at Southampton and we need to keep the ball and get them all jumpy again ...... just like teams do to us.
It does look like they're turning on Hughton right when they need them most to be fair. Delia will be back on the pitch at half time no doubt if they're not winning.
If she is I'll go for a 15 minute piss ......... looking at my genitals would be more appealing than watching that wrinkled old crone droning on
Match OP completed. Norwich City Vs Sunderland Official Sunderland Not606 Match Thread please log in to view this image Match Appointments Referee: Phil Dowd Assistants: H Lennard & D Eaton Forth Official: M Atkinson Norwich Team News Norwich are unlikely to throw fit-again defender Michael Turner straight back into action on Saturday having just recovered from a hamstring injury. On-loan Newcastle winger Jonas Gutierrez also played for Norwich Under-21s in midweek after his calf problem, but he is another who is not expected to be in the Canaries' match-day squad. Midfielder Leroy Fer (hamstring) remains out, while winger Elliott Bennett has this week finally returned to training following seven months of rehabilitation from a serious knee injury. Sunderland Team News Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher will miss the trip through injury. The Scotland international damaged an ankle during the first half of last Saturday's goalless draw with Crystal Palace and will sit out the game at Carrow Road as he waits to discover the extent of the damage. However, Gus Poyet has a near-full-strength squad from which to select with only keeper Keiren Westwood (shoulder) otherwise on the casualty list. Head to Head please log in to view this image Form Giude please log in to view this image Last Corresponding Meeting please log in to view this image What the 'Experts' Say please log in to view this image Lawrenson Norwich come into this game on the back of a 4-2 defeat at Southampton, while Sunderland drew 0-0 to Crystal Palace. Home boss Chris Hughton is under all sorts of pressure. This game is a big, big, biggie. While the cup runs have been good for Sunderland, they've got to stay in this league. Because of Norwich's fixtures towards the end of the season, this is a game they have to win. My problem with tipping Sunderland away from home is that they don't look like they have goals in them. I think Norwich might be the third team to go down. But Sunderland will just stay out, only because they got rid of Paolo Di Canio early enough in the season to get an improvement out of Gus Poyet. ****'s prediction: 1-0 Merson This is a massive game - probably the biggest game of the weekend for me, bigger than Chelsea v Arsenal. If you win the Premier League you win the Premier League. If you go out of the Premier League and it's 'thank you and goodnight'. In this day and age when so much money is riding on survival, it's a huge match. I think Norwich are decent at home, I really do. If they had a little bit more luck in front of goal, they wouldn't be where they are. They need to show a bit more going forward away from home because they've got some decent players. PAUL PREDICTS: 2-0 Facts n Stats There have been just five goals scored in the last six Premier League games played at Carrow Road, three for the Canaries and two against. Craig Gardner scored in both Premier League meetings with Norwich City last season. None of the last 12 league meetings between Norwich and Sunderland has ended as an away win (nine home wins and three draws). Betting please log in to view this image Links www.canaries.co.uk/club/visit-us/ www.walkit.com/norwich www.visitnorwich.co.uk
Three players who've featured for both sides in profile. DICKSON ETUHU Dickson Etuhu joined Sunderland from Norwich in July 2007 and spent just over a year on Wearside. The Nigerian midfielder began his career at Manchester City but it was with Preston North End where he really came to prominence. He featured in 150 games for the Lancashire outfit and played a key role in the clubâs run to the Division One play-off final in 2004-05. Having previously had a loan spell at Norwich, Etuhu moved to Carrow Road on a permanent basis in January 2006 for a fee of £450,000. Roy Keane brought the combative midfielder to the Stadium of Light in July 2007 as he prepared for life in the top flight. After making his debut in the season-opening 1-0 win over Spurs, Etuhu made a further 20 appearances during the 2007-08 season, scoring his only goal in a 2-0 victory over Wigan in February 2008 (pictured). He later moved on to Fulham and current club Blackburn and has passed the career mark of 400 appearances. KEITH BERTSCHIN Keith had spells with both Sunderland and Norwich in the Eighties during a long playing career. The striker began his career at Barnet and later played for Ipswich and Birmingham prior to moving to Carrow Road in 1981. He made 114 league appearances for the Canaries, scoring 29 goals, and also had a loan spell with US side Jacksonville Tea Men whilst with the Norfolk club. After hitting 29 goals in 88 league appearances for Stoke, Bertschin moved north to Roker Park, debuting against Portsmouth in March 1987. A total of 43 appearances in red and white yielded 10 goals, with the frontman later representing Walsall, Chester and a number of non-league clubs. He then moved into coaching and later returned to Wearside as Sunderlandâs reserve team manager under Steve Bruce. He is currently working alongside Bruce at Hull City. MICHAEL TURNER Defender Turner is in his second season in yellow and green having joined the Canaries from Sunderland ahead of the 2012-13 campaign. The big centre-back burst onto the scene at Brentford having originally been an apprentice at Charlton, during which time he had a loan spell at Leyton Orient before joining the Bees. Turnerâs form at Griffin Park soon saw him move up the league ladder, with a switch to Hull City completed in summer 2006. The defender was voted the Tigersâ Player of the Season as the club won promotion to the Barclays Premier League in 2007-08, and went on to play every minute of the following campaign. Only Sylvain Distin of Portsmouth matched that feat. Steve Bruce made Turner one of his first signings at the Stadium of Light in August 2009 and the defender was a regular fixture in 2009-10, playing 36 games. Turnerâs 2010-11 season was disrupted by injuries and he made just 16 appearances â a tally which increased to 29 in 2011-12. He then moved on to Carrow Road, where he is closing in on 50 appearances. The defender hasnât featured since New Yearâs Day due to injury, though he made a comeback with Cityâs U21 side in midweek.
a total of 52,000 clap banners have been produced and will be given to Norwich fans attending this weekendâs game against the Black Cats
