Prediction: Sunderland vs Liverpool

9th March 2012

Sunderland managed to make amends for the embarrassing defeat to West Brom as they held bitter rivals Newcastle to 1-1 draw at St James Park, but the hard-earned point could end up costing them dearly. Liverpool failed to build on their Carling Cup success, having lost at home to Arsenal, with the disappointing defeat marking the end of Reds’ Champions League hopes.

Sunderland chiefs have had their share of bad decisions over the last couple of years, but bringing Martin O’Neill to replace Steve Bruce certainly wasn’t one of them. The Northern Irish manager has been doing wonder since arriving to the Stadium of Light in December, having completely transformed the team in a short period of time. The Black Cats’ impressive run of results came to an abrupt end as they recorded a 4-0 defeat to West Bromwich and that was hardly a perfect introduction into the Tyne-Wear derby against Newcastle United. Nevertheless, Sunderland recovered well from the Hawthorns setback to take the lead at St James Park, and they battled valiantly with ten men on the pitch until Shola Ameobi scored the equalizer in injury time. Martin O’Neill can be very satisfied with his team’s showing in Newcastle, but the game still left a bad taste in the mouth as midfielders Stephane Sessegnon and Lee Cattermole have been suspended for three and four games respectively. Kieran Richardson is doubtful with a calf strain, but John O’Shea is back in contention.

Past few weeks have been pretty tempestuous for Liverpool and while their fans were delighted to see the Reds win their first trophy in six years, they had to come to terms with what could be another season without Champions League football. Kenny Dalglish’s side were given a brilliant opportunity to boost their Champions League hopes as they took the lead against Arsenal thanks to Laurent Koscielny’s own goal after Dirk Kuyt had missed a penalty as well as failed to score on the rebound. But the Reds then conceded two cheap goals to miss out on what could have been a very important victory, once again proving that Anfield is by no means a fortress any more. The fact that their away showings have been pretty solid this term can give the Reds some reason for optimism before the trip to the Stadium of Light, but given the way their back line is playing at the moment, Liverpool might need to score at least a couple in order to win in Sunderland. Steven Gerrard and Glen Johnson are back to the side, but they are still rated doubtful, while Daniel Agger remains in the infirmary.

Conclusion

Sunderland can be very satisfied with how they played at St James Park, although the absence of Sessegnon and Cattermole could damage their chances in this match. Liverpool no longer have problems in the attacking department, but now the back line is looking shaky, and I am tempted to go with over 2.5 goals here.

Verdict: Over 2.5 goals

Best Odds: 11/10

Bookmaker: William Hill