Each Premier League season, there are one or two teams consigned to doom even before Christmas has passed. Sometimes such bold predictions are far from the mark, but others – like Aston Villa last season – prove to be the beginning of a torturous season for a club. Sunderland and Hull are two of the clubs nearing the ‘guaranteed relegation’ label this season. The Black Cats have been here before, too.
Their innate ability to scrape away from the perils of slipping into the Championship each season must be running out. Panicked change of managers have seen them recover from the depths of the Premier League table in several of the recent seasons. Having won their first game of the season last time out, Sunderland now face Hull – who won their first game since August just before the international break.
With it a near certainty that at least one of Sunderland and Hull will face the drop this season, their Saturday 3pm clash at the Stadium of Light is one of the most pivotal games in their respective campaigns. Mike Phelan and David Moyes are already lingering above the managerial trapdoor in the knowledge that a poor display this weekend could see them discarded.
There is a controversial, but proven firefighter lurking. Sam Allardyce, ready to appear from the wilderness, is the strongest card that the board members at Sunderland and Hull hold. With Tony Pulis firmly off the table at West Bromwich Albion, Allardyce is the leading relegation evader. The logic goes, for the most part, that if you give Allardyce the backing in the January window he will be able to give your club a fighting chance of safety.
Moyes and Phelan are fully aware of Allardyce’s presence. Sunderland would still have him at the helm had his head not been turned by the England management job, while Hull’s reluctance to hand Phelan the job on a full-time basis suggests it won’t take a lot for them to look elsewhere.
The revenue at stake for Premier League safety far outweighs any potential negative PR that could be attracted as a result of hiring Allardyce. The fateful comments from Allardyce were poor given the circumstances and his status as England manager, but they are extremely unlikely to have any impact on his employability at club level.
The Allardyce card is within reach for Sunderland and Hull. Without being present, or having any meaningful link to the game, England’s most short-term of permanent managers will loom large over the Stadium of Light this weekend. A clear result for either team could mean the return of one of the Premier League’s most opinion-splitting managers.
A draw in this game is, perhaps, the worst thing that can happen for either team. A result not significant enough to create change (of manager, players or tactics) will see the status quo continue. The current trajectories of Sunderland and Hull’s season show only one likely outcome – the Championship in 2017/18.
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