Match Preview: Sunderland v Tottenham Hotspur — The Lads Return To Action!

Sunderland step back into the Premier League spotlight this afternoon, welcoming crisis-hit Tottenham Hotspur to the Stadium of Light with only seven fixtures remaining in what has already been a remarkable return campaign for the Wearsiders.

Full live pictures will be carried by Sky Sports, while BBC Radio Newcastle will provide ball-by-ball commentary for listeners in the region. Supporters can also follow every kick through the Roker Report Twitter feed (@RokerReport) and find post-match player ratings at www.RokerReport.sbnation.com.

The international break has felt interminable for Sunderland fans still smarting from a derby-day defeat at home, but the resumption of club football offers an immediate chance to reset. Eleventh in the table and mathematically safe for more than a month, the Black Cats can still glance upward: only six points separate fifth-placed Liverpool from Sunderland, and the Premier League’s new-found European Performance Spot means a late dash could yet carry genuine continental significance. Should Aston Villa win the Europa League, or Liverpool lift the Champions League, the number of English qualifiers could swell further, keeping hopes alive deep into May.

Standing in Sunderland’s way are visitors who have spent the past three months in free-fall. Tottenham have collected just five points from the last 39 available, have not tasted victory since 28 December, and arrive on Wearside under a third head coach of the campaign after the departure of Igor Tudor. Former Marseille and Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi has been entrusted with halting a 13-match winless sequence that has dragged last season’s Europa League holders into the relegation places.

Bookmakers rate both sides at 8/5 to claim victory, with the draw priced at 23/10, reflecting the uncertainty surrounding a Spurs squad that showed fleeting resilience in a 1-1 draw at Anfield last time out yet remains perilously short of confidence.

Sunderland’s probable XI: Mannone; Jones, Kone, O’Shea, Denayer; Manquillo, Rodwell, Ndong, Larsson; Borini (or Honeyman); Defoe. Unused substitutes could include Domingues, Love, Lescott, Pienaar, Gooch and Januzaj.

Tottenham’s likely lineup: Vorm; Walker, Rose (or Davies), Wanyama, Alderweireld, Dier; Son (or Sissoko), Dembele (or Janssen), Alli, Eriksen; Kane. Lopez, Wimmer, Carter-Vickers and Winks provide further options from the bench.

With De Zerbi’s voice still fresh in Spurs ears and Sunderland seeking a first home win in three attempts, a tight, tense afternoon beckons on the banks of the River Wear.