September 1, 2012 3:00 PM BST
Liberty Stadium — Swansea
Referee: R. East
Attendance: 20350
Swansea - Sunderland Preview: Swans look to extend run against a Black Cats side without a Premier League win in eight
New signings Pablo Hernandez and Adam Johnson could both feature on Saturday, as Michael Laudrup's men aim for three points to equal their longest winning streak in the top flight
By Joe Wright
| PROBABLE LINEUPS |
|
SWANSEA CITY
Vorm Rangel, Chico, Williams, Taylor De Guzman, Michu, Britton Dyer, Graham, Routledge |
SUNDERLAND
Mignolet Brown, Cuellar, Kilgallon, O'Shea McClean, Cattermole, Gardner, Johnson Sessegnon Fletcher |
Michael Laudrup is unlikely to tinker with a Swansea side which has taken maximum points from their opening two Premier League games without conceding a goal.
Scott Sinclair is likely to have completed a switch to champions Manchester City before Saturday afternoon, leaving Wayne Routledge and Nathan Dyer to continue out wide, with Danny Graham leading the line in attack. New signing Pablo Hernandez could well earn a place on the bench.
Martin O'Neill may well opt for a 4-5-1 system in a bid to stifle the Swans midfield, with Stephane Sessegnon, who has just penned a new three-year deal with the club, likely to start in behind Steven Fletcher. Adam Johnson could be in line to make his Premier League debut for the Black Cats, with Sebastian Larsson set for the bench.
Wes Brown (knee) and David Vaughan (hernia) will not be risked, while Phil Bardsley (ankle) remains sidelined until after the international break.
| DID YOU KNOW? |
Swansea have won their last three Premier League matches in a row, losing just one in seven.
- Midfielder Michu (pictured, right) has a perfect shots-to-goals ratio so far this season, having scored three times from three efforts on target.
- The Swans have scored eight goals from just 11 shots on target so far this season
- Despite the season being in its infancy, Michael Laudrup's side will equal their longest winning streak of last season with victory on Saturday.
- The Swans failed to score against the Black Cats in both matches last season - only three other sides managed to shut out the Welsh outfit.
- Sunderland are without a win in their last eight Premier League matches, failing to score in five of those.
- Martin O'Neill's side have only picked up 13 points in their last 15 games.
- Their 2-0 win over Swansea back in January was their only win over the Welsh side in eight attempts.
Reader's Predictions
Top 3 Predictions
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Swansea City 2-1 Sunderland
- 18.29 %
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Swansea City 2-0 Sunderland
- 13.68 %
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Swansea City 3-0 Sunderland
- 9.57 %
| Premier League (EPL) | 29 Jan 2013 | Sunderland 0 - Swansea City 0 | |
| Premier League (EPL) | 1 Sep 2012 | Swansea City 2 - Sunderland 2 | |
| Premier League (EPL) | 21 Jan 2012 | Sunderland 2 - Swansea City 0 | |
| Premier League (EPL) | 27 Aug 2011 | Swansea City 0 - Sunderland 0 |
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| 19 May 2013 | Swansea City 0 - Fulham 3 | EPL |
| 12 May 2013 | Manchester United 2 - Swansea City 1 | EPL |
| 7 May 2013 | Wigan Athletic 2 - Swansea City 3 | EPL |
| 4 May 2013 | Swansea City 0 - Manchester City 0 | EPL |
| 28 Apr 2013 | Chelsea FC 2 - Swansea City 0 | EPL |
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| 19 May 2013 | Tottenham 1 - Sunderland 0 | EPL |
| 12 May 2013 | Sunderland 1 - Southampton 1 | EPL |
| 6 May 2013 | Sunderland 1 - Stoke City 1 | EPL |
| 29 Apr 2013 | Aston Villa 6 - Sunderland 1 | EPL |
| 20 Apr 2013 | Sunderland 1 - Everton 0 | EPL |
| 1 | Michel Vorm | Goalkeeper |
| 3 | Neil Taylor | Defender |
| 4 | Chico | Defender |
| 6 | Ashley Williams | Defender |
| 22 | Ángel Rangel | Defender |
| 7 | Leon Britton | Midfielder |
| 9 | Michu | Midfielder |
| 12 | Nathan Dyer | Midfielder |
| 15 | Wayne Routledge | Midfielder |
| 20 | Jonathan De Guzmán | Midfielder |
| 10 | Danny Graham | Striker |
| 25 | Gerhard Tremmel | Goalkeeper |
| 5 | Alan Tate | Defender |
| 33 | Ben Davies | Defender |
| 24 | Sung-Yong Ki | Midfielder |
| 26 | Kemy Agustien | Midfielder |
| 17 | Itay Shechter | Striker |
| 19 | Luke Moore | Striker |
| 22 | Simon Mignolet | Goalkeeper |
| 16 | John O'Shea | Defender |
| 24 | Carlos Javier Cuéllar | Defender |
| 6 | Lee Cattermole | Midfielder |
| 7 | Sebastian Larsson | Midfielder |
| 8 | Craig Gardner | Midfielder |
| 14 | Jack Colback | Midfielder |
| 11 | Adam Johnson | Midfielder |
| 23 | James McClean | Midfielder |
| 28 | Stéphane Sessegnon | Midfielder |
| 26 | Steven Fletcher | Striker |
| 20 | Keiren Westwood | Goalkeeper |
| 27 | Matthew Kilgallon | Defender |
| 19 | Titus Bramble | Defender |
| 18 | David Meyler | Midfielder |
| 25 | Fraizer Campbell | Striker |
| 10 | Dong-Won Ji | Striker |
| 8 | Louis Saha | Striker |
| Nathan Dyer | |
| Position: | Midfielder |
| Squad Number: | 12 |
| Games | Goals | YC | RC |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Adam Johnson | |
| Position: | Midfielder |
| Squad Number: | 11 |
| Games | Goals | YC | RC |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
