The Wearside team’s season has started off unevenly, but that may be expected for a number of reasons.
First and foremost, they will be disappointed that they were unable to go to the play-off final, when they would have had an excellent opportunity to defeat Coventry City and guarantee a return to the top flight.
In the end, injuries turned out to be expensive, as Luton Town profited from that to defeat them in the play-off semifinals.
In addition, they have lost some key players, like Ross Stewart, who left the Stadium of Light for Championship League opponent Southampton, and Amad Diallo, who ended his loan to Manchester United.
And they brought in several young players during the summer window, with those youngsters needing time to adapt to both first-team football and life on Wearside.
| Sunderland – 2023/24 Signings | ||
|---|---|---|
| Player Name | Signed From | Loan/Permanent |
| Nazariy Rusyn | Zorya Lugansk | Permanent |
| Jenson Seelt | PSV | Permanent |
| Jobe Bellingham | Birmingham City | Permanent |
| Eliezer Mayenda | FC Sochaux | Permanent |
| Luis Semedo | Benfica B | Permanent |
| Nectarios Triantis | Central Coast | Permanent |
| Bradley Dack | Blackburn Rovers | Permanent |
| Timothee Pembele | PSG | Permanent |
| Adil Aouchiche | FC Lorient | Permanent |
| Nathan Bishop | Man United | Permanent |
| Mason Burstow | Chelsea | Loan |
Their form improved following a fairly slow start to the 2023/24 campaign, but they will need to recover from their 4-0 home defeat against Middlesbrough, with Dan Neil’s dismissal just before the interval proving to be the catalyst of the Wearside club’s collapse against Michael Carrick’s men.
They have the depth and energy to get themselves back on track sooner rather than later, although they face a couple of tricky games following the international break with upcoming trips to Stoke City and Leicester City.
Does Bob Murray believe Sunderland will advance?
Murray, despite the fact that the Black Cats were only promoted from League One last year, appears to be very optimistic about their chances of returning to the top division.
They’re back on course, he said. At the Beacon (the location of the club charity), they keep it reasonable and accessible, and they support me wholeheartedly.
They understand. They’ll make it (to the Premier League) eventually.
You wouldn’t doubt him for making this prediction given how quickly the club has advanced after being promoted from the third tier.
At the end of this season, will Sunderland be awarded promotion back to the Premier League?
It’s challenging to say, given the competition they create for inclusion in the promotion mix.
Although both Leicester and Ipswich Town are now on fire, it may be difficult to imagine them finishing in the top two. However, the race for the top six is likely to be wide open throughout the season and you would back the Black Cats to be in or around the promotion mix at the end of this term.
If they can force their way into the top six, they should have a good chance of getting through the play-offs, having plenty of experience playing in the play-offs in recent seasons.
They should also have fewer players out than they did during their two games against Luton in May, so it wouldn’t be a shock to see them get promoted. But a place in the top six isn’t guaranteed.
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