The re-entry of Sunderland into the premier league has been a dream come true. The Black Cats have defied all expectations expected to go directly back down the ladder and have gone up to the seventh position after eight games. They are already 14 points behind champions Liverpool and are on course to Stamford Bridge on Saturday and have a big test to pass.
The event of Sunderland falling out of the Premier League in 2017 had few men envisaging this type of recovery. This was followed by several years in the wilderness with four seasons in League One. However, the arrival of French manager Regis Le Bris, who was still a stranger to the club a year ago, has changed the history of the club. It was the playoffs that gave his side the promotion in exciting ways and they have not looked back on the same.
Sunderland have proven that they are in business supported by their ambitious 27-year old owner, Kyril Louis-Dreyfus. This summer they have spent a breathtaking sum of money of up to 162 million (217 million) to develop a squad that is good enough to play on the top flight, surpassing Manchester City. This investment has already paid off in a very short time with new signings of Granit Xhaka, Enzo Le Fee, and Omar Aldarete playing leading roles.
Defender Dan Ballard hailed the power of Xhaka in the team by commenting, I did not think that one player could influence the team that much but he is an incredible motivator. Training is like you have to impress him.
These men of Le Bris have united ethos and organization and they have yielded not more than 6 league goals, less than any other team excepting Arsenal. However, their toughest match will be against Chelsea who is on a four-match winning streak in all competitions and beat Ajax 5-1 in the Champions League.
Well, we have had a good beginning, Le Bris said. Chelsea are a deep energy team in the top four. It is an enormous test on our part – and a fine lesson to follow.
In the meantime, Arsenal are also seeking to prolong their own streak. With a 4-0 slaughtering of Atletico Madrid, the team of Mikel Arteta is seeking a 7th consecutive victory, as it takes on Crystal Palace on Sunday. Manchester City is three points ahead of the Gunners, and the City are against an emerging Aston Villa.
Liverpool, who defeated Eintracht Frankfurt 5-1 in the midweek, go to Brentford in the late kickoff on Saturday, a challenging match against a team that has just defeated West Ham 2-0.
Elsewhere, West ham which are struggling opens the action of the weekend on Friday away to Leeds United, and ruben Amorim, the Manchester United manager, hopes to take three consecutive league victories as they receive Brighton. Newcastle United play Fulham as Sean Dyche starts his managerial duties at Nottingham Forest with a tough task at high-flying Bournemouth.
The rise of Sunderland can be the best tale in the history of the premier league in itself but whether they can continue with their dream in west London will show how far they have gone.
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