Sunderland fans ‘will be buzzing’ after Opta reveal ahead of Premier League return
Sunderland’s return to the Premier League has been handed a major boost.
Sunderland secured promotion from the Championship with a play-off final victory against Sheffield United.
Regis Le Bris will lead them back into the top flight after an eight-year absence and they have now found out their fixture list.
Sunderland find out Premier League fixtures
The Stadium of Light outfit will start their campaign with favourable matches, a home clash with West Ham and a trip to Burnley before hosting Brentford.
They then face FA Cup winners Crystal Palace, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United in a tough run.
Their final three games of their first 10 include home ties against Wolves and Everton, with a trip to Chelsea sandwiched in between.
The Opta Analyst (18 June) ranks the Mackems’ first 10 matches as the third-easiest in the top flight, with an average opponent ranking of 91.8.
Only Chelsea (91.5) and Wolves (91.2) face opponents with a lower average power ranking than the Black Cats to start the campaign.
Sunderland reveal will excite supporters
It is already an exciting summer for Mackems supporters, as they prepare to witness their side play elite football once again.
However, the fixture list and the latest Opta reveal will only serve to increase the positivity surrounding Le Bris’ side.
Obviously, they are not guaranteed to win all of those games, just based on statistics and probabilities, but if they can secure a decent haul of points in those matches, it will be a big help in their survival bid.
Attention will now turn to their summer transfer business and Kyril Louis-Dreyfus needs to ensure that Le Bris is backed with significant funding in the market.
The departure of Jobe Bellingham to Borussia Dortmund has the potential to be a crucial blow, so it is vital that the ownership invests a huge amount of money into the squad, especially with the gap between the established teams and newly-promoted ones being so big.
If they can add the right signings and ultimately secure survival, it could be a very promising season for the North East outfit.
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