Sunderland’s European football permutations ahead of Chelsea clash
Sunderland may well be just one win away from qualifying for Europe.
Regardless of what happens next Sunday, this season has been a phenomenal one for the Black Cats, who have picked up 51 points.
The goal was to avoid immediate relegation to the Championship, and they have passed that test with flying colours.
And with one game left to be played, the stakes are as high as they have ever been, with European football in sight for Regis Le Bris’ side.
But what needs to happen for that to become a reality?
Sunderland have to beat Chelsea
First things first, if Sunderland fail to beat Chelsea next weekend, they will miss out on a European spot for the next campaign.
But should they achieve that, then they still need some results to go their way.
Starting with Brentford, the Black Cats will have their fingers crossed that they fail to beat Liverpool, and if so, a win against Chelsea would take them up to eighth.
That would be a Conference League spot, and yet Sunderland could still go one step further.
Assuming Brentford lose or draw, and the Black Cats win, if Brighton were to fall to defeat against Man United, Sunderland would move into seventh.
That would be a Europa League spot.
Quite frankly, qualifying for either competition would be a major achievement for the Black Cats, and certainly the perfect way to wrap up what has been a fantastic 12 months for those concerned with the red and white.
Sunderland set for disrupted summer again, for the right reasons
The Wearsiders had the least amount of time out of every Premier League club to prepare for the current campaign, given that they were the last team to have their status confirmed.
With how well the recruitment went, it didn’t really have much of an impact at all.
Nevertheless, the ongoing uncertainty about European football poses a similar scenario, with Sunderland’s transfer plans likely to shift signficantly if they achieve their goal.
Either way, we are in for an exciting few weeks.
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