Sunderland ‘can forget about Wembley’ amid new Coventry City reveal
Sunderland fans might need to rethink booking any hotels near Wembley Stadium for the Championship playoff finals.
The Mackems have secured their place in the playoffs for the end of the season, giving them a brilliant opportunity to earn promotion to the Premier League this season.
Just three games will stand in their way of returning to the English top flight, but as is always the case with the playoff system, nothing is guaranteed.
Regis Le Bris’ men will be aiming to build as much momentum as possible between now and the end of the season, and improving from their recent 1-0 loss against Swansea City will be important.
Sunderland might face their bogey team
Sunderland currently sit fourth in the table, and if things didn’t change between now and the end of the campaign, they would play Bristol City in the semi-finals.
That would likely be the preferred option as opposed to what the Opta supercomputer is predicting for Sunderland’s future.
The supercomputer has the Black Cats set to finish fourth, but instead believes that Frank Lampard’s Coventry City will finish in fifth, meaning they would play each other in the semi-finals.
While Sunderland would likely head into the game as the favourites, purely due to their league position, but playing Coventry might be a problem.
| Vs. Coventry | Record |
| Games Won | 12 |
| Games Drawn | 18 |
| Games Lost | 18 |
That’s because Coventry have been something of a bogey team for Sunderland in recent years, and while there is no easy game in the playoffs, Lampard’s men might be one they’d prefer to avoid.
Sunderland fans have to go back to February 2007 for the last time they defeated the Sky Blues, having gone 10 games since that point without beating them.
Sunderland will be focusing on momentum
The Mackems will likely not be worrying about who they might play in the playoff semi-finals or the history between them until a match is official, and will instead concentrate on gaining as much momentum as possible before that competition begins.
Momentum has proven to be a significant factor in which teams perform well in the playoffs, and therefore Sunderland will not want to be complacent purely because they’ve been in the top six for the bulk of the season.
Sunderland have four games to go before the season ends, and taking as many points from those fixtures will be important.