Sunderland vs West Brom
Venue: Stadium of Light
Kick off: 4pm
In-form Nigerian striker, Brown Ideye, will on Saturday (today) be the cynosure of all eyes as he leads West Bromwich Albion attack against their Premiership rivals, Sunderland, at the Stadium of Light.
Ideye appeared to be on his way out of The Hawthorns in January after the club accepted an offer from Qatari outfit, Al Gharafa.
However, the failure to land their own transfer targets saw Albion block the move and that has proven to be a blessing in disguise, with the £10 million striker having found the net four times in his last three outings.
With him and Saido Berahino up front, West Brom have the firepower to move clear of trouble. Victor Anichebe is available again after recovering from a muscle strain, but will have to make do for a place on the bench.
Meanwhile, Sunderland manager Gus Poyet is showing signs of feeling the pressure ahead of the Premier League visit of West Bromwich Albion.
Consecutive 2-0 defeats to Queens Park Rangers and League Onegiant-killers Bradford City have seen the Black Cats dragged right into the relegation mire and knocked out of the FA Cup.
Such results prompted Poyet into writing an open letter to the club’s fans this week, in which he accepted full responsibility for their struggles and asked for them to retain their patience and belief.
The Uruguayan performed miracles to keep Sunderland in the top flight last season, but is frustrated that they again find themselves fighting for their lives, having failed to ‘progress in their identity’.
Two
points above the drop zone, the Wearsiders are two points behind West Brom, who find themselves in a much more positive mindset following an impressive run of form since the appointment of Tony Pulis.
points above the drop zone, the Wearsiders are two points behind West Brom, who find themselves in a much more positive mindset following an impressive run of form since the appointment of Tony Pulis.The Baggies have lost only one of nine matches since the Welshman’s arrival and showed evidence of their improvement by thrashing West Ham United 4-0 last weekend to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.
of nine matches since the Welshman’s arrival and showed evidence of their improvement by thrashing West Ham United 4-0 last weekend to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.Sunderland Possible starting lineup: Pantilimon; Reveillere, Vergini, O’Shea, Van Aanholt; Cattermole, Larsson, Gomez; Wickham, Johnson, Defoe.
West Brom Possible starting lineup: Foster; Dawson, McAuley, Lescott, Brunt; Morrison, Yacob, Fletcher, Sessegnon; Berahino, Ideye.
