The clash that “means everything”: Sunderland v Newcastle | OneFootball

There is no bigger fixture in the North East than the Tyne-Wear derby, and for the first league face-off since 2016, the Geordies of Newcastle will travel to the Stadium of Light to take on the Mackems of Sunderland.

Without a shadow of a doubt one of the liveliest derbies in English football, it’s seen pitch invasions, fan clashes and even one Newcastle fan infamously punching a police horse.

A numbers game?

With historic clashes like this, there’s always plenty of stats to be thrown around. In league head-to-heads, Newcastle have just pipped their local rivals, winning 51 of 142 their meetings to Sunderland’s 47.

These two sides have not met in the top division since 2016, when they battled out a 1-1 draw at St James’ Park. They most recently met last season in the FA Cup, where Newcastle thumped the Mackems 3-0, but things looked very different going into this weekend: just one point separated Sunderland in ninth on 23 points and Newcastle in12th on 22.

It could be argued some of these numbers mean very little here, like Newcastle losing their last three league games away to Sunderland, or Sunderland remaining unbeaten in their last nine league games against Newcastle (W6 D3) – seeing as the last of those matches was played roughly a decade ago.

Stats that might matter however: Regis Le Bris’ side remain undefeated at home and Newcastle have only managed one away win from 10 games. The Stadium of Light has been a fortress this season, and Sunderland fans will definitely bring the noise to make things as difficult as they can for the visitors.

“It has been loud and I expect it to be louder against Newcastle,” Le Bris said ahead of the clash. “So far, the players have used this energy really well. To ride the momentum, to change the dynamic when needed. I hope this will be the case once again.

“This extra energy can help the project so when we are connected, we have this advantage at the Stadium of Light,” he added.

The pressure is on

There are no illusions about how important this match is, both for the teams fighting it out in the table and for the fans cheering them on. Three points this weekend will feel like much more.

There are plenty of Newcastle names who know the weight of this clash already, including Dan Burn, Bruno Guimarães, and Anthony Gordon who all featured in the FA Cup fixture last season.

New arrivals like Nick Woltemade and Malick Thiaw will be getting their first taste of the derby, but manager Eddie Howe has vowed “we will use whatever methods we can to make sure that everyone enters the pitch fully aware of the importance.”

Howe himself has admitted that the iconic clash “means everything” to him with the stakes as high as they are. “I want to do the club, the city, our people proud”, he added, “I want them to be proud of the team. I want to be proud of the players so that’s my challenge ahead of the match.”

Underdog status suits the Black Cats

Le Bris described it as “a privilege” to be hosting Newcastle and acknowledged that the game was “really big” for the fans. Faced with a team competing in Europe’s top tier, the manager conceded that his team were “underdogs, challengers” going into the weekend.

But being the underdogs might suit the hosts, as no side have gained more points from losing positions in the Premier League than Sunderland this season (12), while no side have lost more from winning positions so far than Newcastle (11).

This will be a huge test for the newly revamped Sunderland side, and the experience and passion of captain Granit Xhaka will be invaluable. Although the Swiss midfielder is already one yellow card away from a suspension, there is no doubt he will rise to the occasion for this high-octane thriller, even if he faces a suspension as a result.

Who will come out on top?

With bragging rights on the line, not to mention the opportunity for either team to jump up towards the European places with a win, the stakes are high. Sunderland may be underdogs, but they are gritty and they have proven themselves against league heavyweights already this season.

Newcastle haven’t kept a clean sheet since the beginning of October. They will need to keep their defense tight as coming from behind at a raucous Stadium of Light will be a tall task. A win or draw would see them unbeaten in five games, before tricky fixtures against Manchester United and Chelsea.