Alan Shearer can’t help himself as Gary Lineker asks Sunderland fans for forgiveness after slipping up

Sunderland are in the lofty heights of seventh place after two games in the Premier League.

Sunderland comfortably won their opening game 3-0 against West Ham before being brought back down to earth with a defeat against Burnley.

Still, Sunderland will have seen enough from their opener to have faith in their team being able to avoid relegation this season.

Regis Le Bris’ side have been extremely active in the transfer market, and are now reportedly looking to sign Jhon Lucumi from Bologna.

If they can finalise that transfer before the window closes, things could be looking even brighter.

Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris holding his hood
Credit: Imago

Gary Lineker rectifies Sunderland gaffe

Sunderland will be disappointed to have lost 2-0 at Burnley, as the Clarets have been labelled as their relegation rivals.

Indeed, when discussing the match on his The Rest Is Football podcast, Gary Lineker naturally felt inclined to introduce the segment by saying: “Let’s move on to the fixture at the bottom of the table.”

Lineker, to his credit, immediately corrected himself, explaining that he was only assuming that they might be at the bottom of the table later on and asked fans to forgive him.

Alan Shearer couldn’t help but comment after Lineker’s slip of the tongue.

He said: “I’m pleased that was you saying that about Sunderland and not me because the Mackems will be coming for me again.”

Sunderland’s defeat at Burnley suggests proven striker might still be needed

Sunderland’s defeat at Burnley highlighted one major issue: a lack of cutting edge.

Eliezer Mayenda’s early miss summed up the problem. The Spaniard scored against West Ham, but he will know he should have done better with that chance. If he converted that, the game likely could have turned out differently.

In the Premier League, games are won and lost in these key moments. This isn’t like the Championship where you may get third, fourth and fifth chances.

That’s why Le Bris might be tempted to dip into the transfer market to recruit another proven striker who can convert pressure into goals.

Without reinforcements, Sunderland risk being punished every week. Opposition sides at this level are clinical, and the Mackems can’t afford to be wasteful.

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