Sunderland v Swansea Competition - Sky Bet Championship Venue - Stadium of Light Date - 24 February 2024 Kick off - 3:00pm Following their disappointing 1-2 defeat at home to high flying Ipswich, next up for Luke Williams’ sinking Swansea squad is a difficult looking trip to Sunderland. Last Saturday, Ipswich Town kept up the pace in the chase for automatic promotion with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over the Swans. Nathan Broadhead raced on to Ben Cabango's underhit pass before coolly lifting a shot into the net to give Ipswich an early lead. The Swans struggled for a while before finding an equaliser, with Jerry Yates touching the ball in from close range from Cabango's knockdown. However, Ipswich quickly scored what proved to be the decisive second goal before half-time, Conor Chaplin finishing smartly from Leif Davis' low cross. After a run of only one win in nine Championship games, Ipswich are three points behind second-placed Leeds United having registered back-to-back away victories this week. But this was yet another demoralising day for the Swans, who have slipped to within four points of the relegation zone having taken only four points from seven league games since Luke Williams took over as head coach. Whilst the Swans were losing to the Tractor Boys, Birmingham were coming from behind to beat Sunderland as they won successive Championship games for the first time since October. After trailing to a sloppy Jack Clarke goal at half-time, the Blues turned it round with a Jordan James equaliser before Koji Miyoshi struck an 80th-minute close-range winner. Roared on by a crowd of 27,449 - the biggest home gate for more than seven years - that completed a double for Blues boss Tony Mowbray, who won this fixture when still the Sunderland manager back in November. After this game, Sunderland dismissed their recently appointed Manager, Michael Beale, whilst Birmingham announced that Tony Mowbray needed to take a 6-8 week leave of absence on medical grounds. Best wishes to Mr. Mowbray. The Swans have played Sunderland on 37 previous occasions, winning 12, drawing 12 and losing 13. In the corresponding match last season the Swans ran out 3-1 winners with goals from Joel Piroe, Liam Cullen and Ollie Cooper while the Black Cats’ Luke O’Nien was sent off in the first half. Turning to tomorrow, Keith Stroud will be the man in charge just as he was in the same fixture last season. That was one of the four Swans’ matches that Stroud took charge of last season. Tomorrow’s clash will be the third time Stroud has taken charge of a Swansea fixture this season, after overseeing the Boxing Day trip to Southampton and, more recently, the trip to Leicester City at the end of January. In total, the official from Hampshire has overseen more than 30 Swans matches since being added to the National List of Referees. The first of those was a League Two match against Northampton Town in March 2005, while the most memorable was the Swans 3-2 victory away at Cardiff in April last season. So far this season, Stroud has refereed 19 matches, handing out 96 yellow cards and one red. Stroud will be assisted by Andrew Dallison and Robert Merchant. Scott Tallis will be the fourth official. As for the outcome? Sunderland will no doubt be buoyed after the departure of Michael Beale - it seems that the fans didn’t want him in the first place….. As much as I’d love a repeat of last season’s Swans win, I think that this seaon it will be Sunderland who will be celebrating when Stroud blows the final whistle: 3-1 to the Mackems. Hope I’m wrong
Not going to try and predict this one, hope for a win, would take a draw, but possibly a defeat will be the dead reckoning
The form says we'll err on the side of defeat. Hope I'm wrong, obviously, but hard to be optimistic right now.
Kyle Naughton is set to make his 300th Swansea City appearance at Sunderland, as while the visitors show two changes to their starting line-up at the Stadium of Light. The defender joins the Swans 300 club after just over nine years at the club, with Liam Cullen and Przemyslaw Placheta coming into the side as Jerry Yates and Ollie Cooper drop to the bench. Carl Rushworth is in goal, with Naughton part of an unchanged back four alongside Nathan Wood, Ben Cabango and Josh Tymon. Captain Matt Grimes and Joe Allen are paired together in midfield, with Jamie Paterson operating ahead of them. Placheta and Ronald are in the flanks with Cullen leading the line. Sunderland: Anthony Patterson, Jobe Bellingham, Luke O'Nien (captain), Nazariy Rusyn, Abdoullah Ba, Jenson Seelt, Dan Neil, Callum Styles, Trai Hume, Leo Hjelde, Pierre Ekwah. Substitutes: Nathan Bishop, Timothee Pembele, Hemir, Mason Burstow, Romaine Mundle, Adil Aouchiche, Chris Rigg, Caden Kelly, Thomas Lavery. Swansea City: Carl Rushworth, Ben Cabango, Joe Allen, Matt Grimes (captain), Jamie Paterson, Josh Tymon, Przemyslaw Placheta, Liam Cullen, Nathan Wood, Kyle Naughton, Ronald. Substitutes: Andy Fisher, Jay Fulton, Harry Darling, Jerry Yates, Charlie Patino, Mykola Kuharevich, Charles Sagoe Jr, Ollie Cooper, Filip Lissah.
5 sitters per 1 goal to score anything ! Luckily blunderland are playing like we have been for months
