Like Against Coventry – Regis Le Bris Rallies Sunderland Fans For Newcastle Game | OneFootball

The Tyne-Wear derby is set to take place on Sunday after nearly a decade, returning one of the Premier League’s peerless fixtures to the footballing calendar.

What will make the clash more enticing is that Sunderland and Newcastle will head into the game as near equals, with only a point separating the two in the league standings.

While Sunderland have excelled back in the Premier League, Le Bris will know beating Newcastle would be a serious feather in his cap.

The atmosphere in the derby game can be intense and one goalkeeper picked it out as the best he has ever experienced, while Georginio Wijnaldum compared it to a PSV-Ajax game.

And Le Bris stressed the vital role the atmosphere plays at home games, stating that the team cannot be expected to achieve peak performance 100 per cent of the time, and that during those times when they are not at their best, the crowd can play a pivotal role in deciding matches.

Recalling last season’s Championship play-off semi-final, which the Sunderland boss feels was closely matched with the supporters proving to be the difference, Le Bris hopes for a similar atmosphere against Newcastle.

Le Bris told a press conference (14:14): “I repeat, it’s [the atmosphere] really important for the players.

“Sometimes you can’t play the best football for the full league at home for example.

“Sometimes when it’s a bit flatter, you have an opportunity to tackle, to counter press, to go in behind, flip the pressure and counter press, and you feel the energy of the crowd behind you, it’s totally different.

“I think they are aware of the situation, but when you are on the pitch and you feel this energy, I can say that for us, and for the opponents, the effect is massive.

“It’s our job, so don’t get disturbed by the atmosphere.

“Try to use the best part of the atmosphere to win the game.

“I think for example, probably the last one with a really loud atmosphere was against Coventry and I think it was really tense, really balanced and this little spark from the crowd helped as well.”

Sunderland fans have planned what will be their biggest ever flag display for Sunday in what will be the first such meeting since 2016.

The Black Cats lost their previous match 3-0 against Manchester City, with one presenter saying that questions should be asked of Sunderland, leaving the home side with all the more reason to put in a strong showing against Newcastle.

Le Bris and the Sunderland side will hope to be on top of their game for the fixture, and even if they are not, they will know that they can bank on the faithful to tilt the balance in their favour.