Sunderland given perfect omen for Chelsea match after Premier League announcement
Sunderland have already been handed a boost of sorts ahead of Saturday’s clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
It was another winning weekend as Sunderland beat Wolves 2-0 on Saturday, extending their superb start to the Premier League season.
But the trip to London will provide a stronger test, with the Blues having won their last three games across all competitions.
Chelsea are the favourites against Sunderland, but Enzo Maresca’s side are only ahead of the Black Cats on goal difference.
Sunderland fans will be disrupted by engineering works on Saturday, but the red and white faithful can still be expected to fill out the away end with superb support.
Premier League make announcement ahead of Chelsea clash
Luckily, Sunderland are yet to have any serious gripes with the Premier League referees since their return, and Regis Le Bris will hope to keep it that way.
Reinildo was sent off against Aston Villa earlier in the season, but the defender could have few complaints.
| Sunderland | Yellow cards |
| Granit Xhaka | 3 |
| Noah Sadiki | 3 |
| Reinildo | 1 |
| Arthur Masuaku | 1 |
| Bertrand Traore | 1 |
After he was felled by Matty Cash, the Mozambique international raised his leg and thrust it up and into the stomach of the Villa defender.
The 31-year-old will be available for selection on Saturday, after serving the full three games of his suspension.
The Premier League have announced that Andy Madley will take charge of Sunderland’s game against Chelsea, with Tim Wood set to assist him as the video assistant referee.
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Sunderland have good memories of being refereed by Andy Madley
Madley has taken charge of seven Sunderland games throughout his career, with three of them ending in victory for the Black Cats. Although, the one draw really does go down as a win.
It was the last Sunderland game Madley refereed, and it took place at the end of last season at the Stadium of Light.
The Championship semi-final second leg, in which Dan Ballard‘s late equalising header against Coventry City put Le Bris’ side through to the final, and blew the very roof off the place.
It was a good refereeing performance from Madley, who also oversaw a Sunderland win in his previous game refereeing the Mackems, and there will be hopes that his presence can spur on similar scenes at Stamford Bridge.
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