SUNDERLAND will look to cement their position at the top of the Championship table when they host Oxford United tomorrow.
What are the key pre-match talking points ahead of the game at the Stadium of Light?
MIDFIELD MAKE-UP
Regis Le Bris shuffled his midfield pack at Luton Town on Wednesday, restoring Alan Browne to the starting line-up to add some experience and bite to the heart of midfield. Chris Rigg moved to the right-hand side, with Patrick Roberts dropping down to the bench.
The changes worked a treat, with Browne helping Sunderland repel a series of dangerous Luton attacks, and Rigg drifting in from the flank to open the scoring with a wonderfully-taken goal at the start of the second half.
Tomorrow’s challenge will markedly different to the one the Black Cats faced at Kenilworth Road, with Oxford likely to sit deep and look to soak up pressure at the Stadium of Light.
Sunderland are likely to dominate possession, so that might well mean Le Bris decides to revert to his usual midfield trio of Rigg, Jobe Bellingham and Dan Neil, with Roberts returning to the starting side on the right flank.
CONNOLLY TIME?
Aaron Connolly has come off the bench in Sunderland’s last two matches, with Le Bris having thrust the striker into the matchday squad after watching him score three goals in two Under-21 appearances during the international break.
Might it be time for Connolly to get his first start this weekend? Wilson Isidor has done nothing wrong in attack in the last two games, indeed it was the loanee’s moment of individual brilliance that settled last weekend’s game at Hull City.
This is Sunderland’s third game in the space of six days though, and Isidor had to do a lot of relatively-thankless running during his 67 minutes on the field against Luton.
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At some stage, Le Bris will almost certainly look to give Isidor a rest and hand Connolly a first start since he joined the Black Cats as a free agent last month. Tomorrow could prove to be that day.
YELLOW CARD PERIL
Trai Hume has been walking a disciplinary tightrope for quite a while now, having picked up his fourth booking of the season in the home win over Middlesbrough four matches ago. He has avoided the fifth booking that would automatically trigger a suspension up until now, but given the whole-hearted way in which he defends, he is unlikely to stay yellow-card free forever.
After Wednesday night, however, he is no longer the only Sunderland player who will be walking a disciplinary tightrope this weekend.
Rigg also picked up his fourth booking of the season when he was punished for a late challenge just before the half-hour mark. Then, as part of the post-match melee that saw players from both sides clashing, Bellingham was also shown a yellow card that takes him to four for the season.
As a result, if any of Hume, Rigg or Bellingham was to be booked against Oxford, they would automatically miss the following weekend’s trip to Loftus Road to take on QPR. This is Sunderland’s 11th league outing, and bookings are not wiped off until the 19th game of the campaign.
THE WEIGHT OF EXPECTATION
This has been a superb start to the season for Sunderland, with Wednesday’s win having opened up a three-point gap to Burnley at the top of the table.
Le Bris and his squad have created a sense of excitement – but that also brings expectation. A home game against Oxford is exactly the kind of Championship game that can easily bring high-flying sides crashing back down to earth with a bump. Nevertheless, it is also one Sunderland will be expected to win.
How will the Black Cats’ youngsters cope with the added pressure that is being piled onto their shoulders with every game that passes? So far, they have answered every question that has been posed of them. They are no longer surprise packages, though. Will that affect them?
OXFORD OVER-ACHIEVE
Having made it into the Championship via last season’s League One play-off final, Oxford were expected to struggle in the second tier. Instead, they head to Wearside in a healthy 11th position in the table.
Admittedly, their home form (three wins and three draws from six matches) is markedly superior to their away record (no wins, two draws and three defeats from five games). They should not be underestimated though, given they have lost just one of their last eight matches.
Sunderland need to be especially wary of Portuguese midfielder Ruben Rodrigues, who is on two goals and two assists for the season, and striker Dane Scarlett, who is on loan with the Us from Tottenham.
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