FA Cup
play pause open Close
 
Played
January 29, 2012 1:30 PM GMT
Stadium of Light — Sunderland
Referee:‬ K. Friend‎
Attendance:‬ 33275‎
 

Sunderland - Middlesbrough Preview: Black Cats are undefeated in their last four meetings with Boro

The two sides have also previously met four times in the FA Cup, with each club progressing twice, although the visitors once went further due to the Black Cats' disqualification

By Adithya Ananth

More On :  Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Sunderland vs Middlesbrough
New Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill
Getty Images
PROBABLE LINE-UPS

SUNDERLAND


Mignolet
Bardsley, O'Shea, Brown, Richardson
Larsson, Cattermole, Vaughan, McLean
Sessegnon
Wickham

MIDDLESBROUGH

Ripley
McMahon, Bates, McManus, Bennett
Haroun, R Williams, Robson, Zemmama
Emnes, McDonald
Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill will not be able to call upon the services of Nicklas Bendtner, since the striker suffered a facial injury during the match against Swansea City. The Dane is expected to be sidelined for a few weeks.

Meanwhile, Marcos Angeleri remains unavailable due to his knee injury, while Jack Colback was supposed to have resumed training on Friday.

Titus Bramble (Achilles) and Craig Gordon (ankle) are both doubts for this clash due to their respective injury problems. Fraizer Campbell has made an appearance for the reserves and should be in contention for this fixture.

Middlesbrough boss Tony Mowbray will not be able to use Kevin Thomson or former Black Cat Julio Arca, as the duo are both suspended. Goalkeeper Jason Steele is a doubt due to a thigh problem, while Bart Ogbeche is still out with a hamstring issue. Finally, Nicky Bailey is still recovering from medial ligament damage and will not play any part in the upcoming fixture.

DID YOU KNOW?

  • Sunderland have lost only one of their last nine home games. That defeat was a 1-2 result against Wigan Athletic.
  • The Black Cats have won the FA Cup on two occasions. Their first triumph was in 1937, when three second half goals - one each from Bobby Gurney, Raich Carter and Eddie Burbanks - ensured a 3-1 win over Preston North End. The other time was in 1973, when a 1-0 result against Leeds United saw them lift the trophy.
  • That piece of silverware is the Black Cats' only major trophy since the Second World War.
  • Sunderland have played 330 games in the FA Cup throughout the course of their history. If points were accumulated through these games, then they would have been scoring 1.49 points-per-game.
  • Middlesbrough have hit a rough patch of form lately, unable to win any of their last four games in the Championship. They are on a run of three consecutive losses in the league.
  • Boro have not been able to beat Sunderland in the last four meetings between the two sides, drawing two and losing two in the process.
  • The two sides have previously been drawn against each other four times in this competition. The Blact Cats progressed twice, with the opposition having gone forward twice as well. But it must be noted that on one occasion, Boro went ahead due to Sunderland being disqualified.
  • Middlesbrough have scored 480 goals so far in 315 FA Cup games, conceding 425 in the process.

How do you stay up to date with football when on the move? With http://m.goal.com – your best source for mobile coverage of the beautiful game.
Follow Goal.com on Twitter
Follow Goal.com on Facebook
Field Report
Reader's Predictions
Top 3 Predictions
  • Sunderland 2-0 Middlesbrough
    17.65 %
  • Sunderland 3-0 Middlesbrough
    15.29 %
  • Sunderland 1-0 Middlesbrough
    12.94 %
Head to Head
FA Cup ‎(FA)‎ 8 Feb 2012 Middlesbrough 1 - Sunderland 2
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
FA Cup ‎(FA)‎ 29 Jan 2012 Sunderland 1 - Middlesbrough 1
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
Premier League ‎(EPL)‎ 10 Jan 2009 Middlesbrough 1 - Sunderland 1
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
Premier League ‎(EPL)‎ 20 Sep 2008 Sunderland 2 - Middlesbrough 0
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
Last Five Matches
Sunderland
18 Feb 2012Sunderland 2 - Arsenal FC 0FA
11 Feb 2012Sunderland 1 - Arsenal FC 2EPL
8 Feb 2012Middlesbrough 1 - Sunderland 2FA
4 Feb 2012Stoke City 0 - Sunderland 1EPL
1 Feb 2012Sunderland 3 - Norwich City 0EPL
Middlesbrough
8 Feb 2012Middlesbrough 1 - Sunderland 2FA
29 Jan 2012Sunderland 1 - Middlesbrough 1FA
7 Jan 2012Middlesbrough 1 - Shrewsbury Town 0FA
2 Jan 2012Blackpool 3 - Middlesbrough 0ENG2
31 Dec 2011Middlesbrough 1 - Peterborough United 1ENG2
Odds
Returns: Sunderland £65.00 Sportingbet Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £100 in free bets!
Returns: Draw £40.00 Bet365 Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200
Returns: Middlesbrough £150.00 Sportingbet Open an account with Sportingbet today and get up to £100 in free bets!
Team News
Available Squads
22Simon MignoletGoalkeeper
2Phil BardsleyDefender
16John O'SheaDefender
5Wes BrownDefender
11Kieran RichardsonMidfielder
7Sebastian LarssonMidfielder
15David VaughanMidfielder
8Craig GardnerMidfielder
23James McCleanStriker
28Stéphane SessegnonMidfielder
10Connor WickhamStriker
20Keiren WestwoodGoalkeeper
4Michael TurnerDefender
14Jack ColbackMidfielder
18David MeylerMidfielder
27Ahmed El MohamadyMidfielder
9Fraizer CampbellStriker
17Dong-Won JiStriker
21Danny CoyneGoalkeeper
2Justin HoyteDefender
26Matthew BatesDefender
39Rhys WilliamsDefender
29Tony McMahonDefender
24Sebastian HinesDefender
-Faris HarounMidfielder
17Barry RobsonMidfielder
27Scott McDonaldStriker
11Marvin EmnesStriker
27Lukas JutkiewiczStriker
-Connor RipleyGoalkeeper
34Joseph BennettDefender
21Malaury MartinMidfielder
33Richard SmallwoodMidfielder
-Cameron ParkMidfielder
35Luke WilliamsStriker
-Curtis MainStriker
Players to Watch
Connor Wickham
Connor Wickham
Position: Striker
Squad Number: 10
Games Goals YC RC
2 0 0 0
Connor Wickham will be important for the Black Cats as he will have to play a more attacking game in the absence of the injured Nicklas Bendtner. His performance in this fixture could help decide whether or not the hosts progress further in the competition.
Matthew Bates
Matthew Bates
Position: Defender
Squad Number: 26
Games Goals YC RC
3 0 0 0
Matthew Bates will have to marshal the Boro back line well if his side are to set up a replay or even progress further in the Cup. But a team enduring a winless streak will have to defend from the front, and as a unit will have to be on their toes throughout this derby encounter against a side high on confidence who are one division above them.
Prediction
Sunderland have had some success against Middlesbrough in the past and should have no significant trouble getting past their opponents in this clash. The visitors will undoubtedly put up a fight, but the Black Cats, buoyant since the appointment of Martin O'Neill, should be able to secure progress in the competition.
Editor's Prediction
Sunderland 2
Middlesbrough 1
Thank you for your comment!
Please enter your name
Please enter your location
Please share your comment!
Comments
7 Comments
Advertisement
Results
ALL MATCHES >>
 
Top Scorers
Player   Goals Penalties
Jermaine Beckford Jermaine Beckford
Striker
Leicester City 		5 0
Darius Henderson Darius Henderson
Striker
Millwall 		4 1
Matt Phillips Matt Phillips
Midfielder
Blackpool 		4 0
Clint Dempsey Clint Dempsey
Midfielder
Fulham 		3 1
Simon Cox Simon Cox
Striker
West Bromwich 		3 0
Advertisement