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'We will be a hard team to beat' - Sunderland captain Lee Cattermole determined to get revenge over Norwich
The injured Black Cats' skipper has claimed that, although he has respect for what the Canaries have achieved this season, he is confident that his side will take all three points
1 Feb 2012 16:06:00
By Edward Tibbles
Lee Cattermole has claimed that Sunderland "will be a hard team to beat" as they look to get revenge on Norwich for their 2-1 defeat earlier in the season.
The young midfielder is currently sidelined with injury but has witnessed first-hand the turnaround in the Mackems' fortunes, led by Martin O'Neill.
And whilst Cattermole was keen to acknowledge the quality Norwich possess, he revealed he views the Premier League clash as an opportunity to make amends for Sunderland's loss at Carrow Road early in the season.
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The young midfielder is currently sidelined with injury but has witnessed first-hand the turnaround in the Mackems' fortunes, led by Martin O'Neill.
And whilst Cattermole was keen to acknowledge the quality Norwich possess, he revealed he views the Premier League clash as an opportunity to make amends for Sunderland's loss at Carrow Road early in the season.
"Norwich are above us in the league so are obviously a good team, because we've done ever so well in recent weeks and still haven't caught them," Cattermole explained to the club’s official website.
"That shows how well they've done. We'll approach the game exactly as we have been doing over the last couple of months and we will be a hard team to beat.
"It [the 2-1 defeat] was a disappointing night, we'd just beaten Stoke but didn't turn up on the night. At the moment, though, we are playing well and picking up plenty of points.
"We are a hard team to beat and it should be a different game."
Sunderland’s recent form has seen them slowly climbing the Premier League table and Cattermole claims that this momentum has come as a result of the belief instilled in the side by new manager O’Neill.
"Confidence is a massive part of any sport and at the moment we're seeing the lads going out and expressing themselves,” he said.
"They are trying things which are coming off when maybe they weren't at the start of the season.
"Everyone's enjoying themselves and when you get a run going it creates a lot of spirit.
"Football isn't all about flair, we're making blocks and tackles in our own penalty area; putting bodies on the line to keep goals out.
"That's as important as someone taking someone on - that kind of determination can take you far."
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Live!
England 1-0 Belgium, Netherlands 4-0 Northern Ireland - follow all the international action LIVE! ahead of Euro 2012
With countries across the continent gearing up for their final warm-up games ahead of Euro 2012, join us for all the action from Saturday's friendlies. Get in touch with us via Twitter with your reaction.
Hosted by Joe Doyle
Hosted by Joe Doyle
19:59 BST
Unfortunately for Northern Ireland, they are trailing the Netherlands 4-0 at half-time. Looks like that one's all sewn up then.
19:54 BST
We're still getting plenty of Hazard chat on Twitter. A few are now saying that he's not worth the hype, others saying he was brilliant(!?) and others (which I agree with), saying he created much of his own hype. What do you think? Get involved!
19:46 BST
Joe Hart has also been giving his thoughts after the Belgium game: "It was a really tough game, a good run out. I thought we played well, [but] we were a little bit bitty at times.
"But, we came through. Obviously there were a lot of changes so it's good to get the result.
"Belgium are a very, very strong side who are going to be really good in the future. Vincent [Kompany] told me about them and said that they were coming good and I totally agree with him."
"But, we came through. Obviously there were a lot of changes so it's good to get the result.
"Belgium are a very, very strong side who are going to be really good in the future. Vincent [Kompany] told me about them and said that they were coming good and I totally agree with him."
19:38 BST
Here's Roy Hodgson's reaction to the result and some injury chat: "I'm very pleased, it's been a hard week and we've used a lot of players. There was a lot of disruption in the second-half with substitutions – some forced upon us, some we wanted to do. But it's still a very good end to the week playing against a good Belgian team here. Arguably even stronger than the Norwegian team we played last week and I've got to be more than happy that we've come out with another victory."
"[Gary] Cahill I suppose is slightly more of a concern for me because it is a jaw injury. We're desperately hoping the CT scan doesn't show any fracture and it's just going to be a bruising situation, which will be bad enough, but won't stop him taking part in the tournament. As far as John's [Terry] concerned he felt his hamstring a little bit. Again it wasn't a major thing when he came off but we still need to scan it just to be 100 per cent sure."
Suffice to say, if Cahill has broken his jaw, he won't play any part in the tournament.
"[Gary] Cahill I suppose is slightly more of a concern for me because it is a jaw injury. We're desperately hoping the CT scan doesn't show any fracture and it's just going to be a bruising situation, which will be bad enough, but won't stop him taking part in the tournament. As far as John's [Terry] concerned he felt his hamstring a little bit. Again it wasn't a major thing when he came off but we still need to scan it just to be 100 per cent sure."
Suffice to say, if Cahill has broken his jaw, he won't play any part in the tournament.
19:35 BST
And another point from today: Eden Hazard wasn't great. Don't think you can judge him on one performance though. What do you think? Is it just a case of too much hype around the Chelsea-bound Belgian?
Inside Goal.Com
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