This week's interview with an opposing fan saw me catch up with Gavin Henderson from Sunderland site RokerReport, who was kind enough to answer my questions
Your start hasn't really set the world alight, and you're yet to win this season - what's the general feeling so far amongst Sunderland fans? Are you confident things will improve?
We’ve certainly started better than we did last season under Paolo Di Canio which can only be viewed as a positive, and traditionally we never do well against newly promoted sides, so it was inevitable that we’d only pick up one point from a possible six away to Burnley and QPR. Aside from that, we’ve come from behind in the games against West Brom, Spurs and Manchester United to earn hard fought draws.
The main worry from my point of view is that we’ve not really clicked yet as a side and, as a result, we’re not scoring goals. We seem to be fairly difficult to beat but just don’t have enough about us to dominate a game in the final third and really attack. There’s a minority of fans that are seriously worried that things won’t improve but I’m confident it will come together eventually. It was a massive mistake not buying a new striker, though.
Have you noticed any changes in the playing style this season?
Not really. It’s been more of a continuation of the style that Poyet was starting to implement last season. We tend to build up from the back slowly, which is all well and good, but we don’t have the players at the top end of the pitch to shift the ball quickly, meaning it often comes to nothing. That said, Gus has yet to throw Billy Jones and Will Buckley in to a Premier League game together and it seems as though we’ll be going with that at the weekend, hopefully adding more pace to our attack.
You can see what Gus is trying to do, and it will come together eventually, but Sunderland fans are traditionally impatient and it’s got to be accepted that in the long run we’ll have the foundations laid to compete in the top half of this league again. Short term, though, we need to be less cautious in possession because it’s a results business and we can’t afford to start poorly. Last season, for all the highs we enjoyed, was something I’d prefer we never replicate again.
Are there any players we should watch out for in particular this weekend?
Lee Cattermole is in the form of his life and it’ll be his job to prevent your midfield from dictating the play, as I expect they will attempt to. If we can prevent the Swansea midfield from creating space, winning it back quickly, it’ll be much easier for us to get the ball forward.
Will Buckley has been very impressive since arriving from Brighton and his pace down the right hand side is something we’ve lacked over the last few weeks in the Premier League. He was handed a debut against Manchester United and was arguably our best player, exploiting the space left by their midfielders in order to cause problems. Since then, though, he’s been limited to appearances from the bench but Gus has confirmed he’ll be starting on Saturday. Neil Taylor needs to be wary of pushing too high up the pitch as Buckley will relish receiving the ball in behind him. [Personally I find that quite worrying! - Ed].
As for ourselves, is there anyone in particular you think your team will need to be wary of?
Where do I start? I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous of the armoury Swansea seem to have these days. Bony’s performance on the last day of last season was mesmeric and he’s the type of forward that defenders just hate playing against. He seems to find pockets of space all over the pitch and rarely loses the ball, making him incredibly difficult to defend against.
Also, Gylfi Sigurdsson worries me immensely. He’s constantly a threat around the box and if we don’t limit the amount of space he seems to get when receiving the ball he can be destructive. That said, are Gylfi and Bony not due a bad performance?!
How do you think you'll fare in general this season?
Both Gus Poyet and Lee Congerton (our Sporting Director) made it clear at the end of last season that the main aim going forward would be to establish a style and take small steps rather than large ones, which may not necessarily be what the Sunderland fans want to hear but is exactly what is needed after years and years of rebuilding, having failed to establish both an identity and continuity within the club.
The transfer business this summer reflects this point – in the main we’ve targeted players who have top flight experience and the hope is that, after years of fighting relegation, we need to have a far more comfortable experience this time around. I’ll take that.
Do you think you'll be looking to keep things similar to how you've played so far this season, or will Poyet make changes against the Swans?
As I aluded to earlier we’ll definitely be changing our shape, especially down the right hand side. Unfortunately Wes Brown is carrying a knock so it means Gus has had his hand forced and must make changes. Santiago Vergini will likely partner John O’Shea in the centre, with Billy Jones slotting into right back for his Premier League debut. Will Buckley will get his opportunity on the right, likely replacing the injured Emmanuele Giaccherini, but the rest of the team should pick itself.
Has any player surpassed expectations so far this season?
I really like the look of Patrick Van Aanholt. When you sign a player for £1.5m they don’t tend to come with a weight of expectation but Paddy is a unique case as he’s the first proper left back we’ve actually owned in about five years. He works hard up and down the line, is quick, and seems to be improving with every game.
You signed (amongst others) Jordi Gomez this summer, and Danny Graham is already on the books. How are they both faring? Are you happy with your transfer business this summer?
They’re both a bit…. Meh. Gomez started against Stoke on Tuesday night and was far too slow on the ball, which didn't help things when we went behind and needed to play with more urgency. I spoke to Wigan fans about him when he signed for us and they were far from complimentary about him, which worries me slightly. That said, I don’t believe he’s been signed to play regularly, but more as an option from the bench later in games. Aside from that, he’s got plenty of experience which always helps.
Lastly, what's your prediction for this match?
We usually do better at home against sides which play better football than us so I really can’t decide which way this is going. Swansea have obviously lost their last two games so will view this as a chance to get back on track but, on the other side, we’ve yet to win a game, despite being relatively hard to beat.
I can see this being a close 2-1 win for the Swans, unfortunately.
I'd certainly take that! Thanks again to Gavin for taking the time to answer our questions - I answered questions for a companion piece on Roker Report which you can see here - check it out here: link