Jan Kirchoff vows to improve his match fitness

Jan Kirchoff has struggled with injuries and fitness in pre-season, but vows to prove he is fit enough to play a full 90 minutes for the Black Cats.

Since his arrival in January from German giants Bayern Munich for a bargain fee of £750,000, Jan Kirchoff played a massive part in keeping Sunderland from dropping down to the second tier of English football.

Injury concerns

Despite some magnificent performances that made him a fan favourite on Wearside, the one major concern for the Black Cats was the German struggling to see out every match he was involved in. Former boss Sam Allardyce regularly brought the player off around the 70 minute mark in fear of him picking up any injury or burning himself out for the remainder of last season’s tough run in.

 A familiar sight for Sunderland fans as Kirchoff struggled to see out the full 90 minutes. (Image Source: Getty Images)

A firm belief in his fitness

Despite the 25-year-old failing to play a great part in pre-season, Kirchoff still firmly believes his fitness levels will match that of the rest of the current squad ahead of the new Premier League season. In an interview with the Sunderland Echo, Kirchoff discussed his current fitness situation. “I feel comfortable to be healthy enough to stay on the pitch and go for a whole season, that won’t be the problem,” Kirchoff said.

He also added: “Fitness is something you can improve always which helps to make your game easier, and that wasn’t the case last year. It was what I struggled with a little bit.”

Kirchoff played arguably his best game in March, in the 1-1 draw away to local rivals Newcastle United. His eye for a through ball, willingness to break up play and ability to ignite attacks became apparent and made him an instant hit with the Sunderland faithful.

Injury worries for the opening game

As well as Kirchoff, Jermain Defoe and Billy Jones picked up pre-season injuries, but assistant manager Paul Bracewell believes the trio will return to training ahead of Saturday’s game against Manchester City.

A new era

The first game against the Citizans will see new manager David Moyes take charge of his first competitive match as Sunderland boss, and Kirchoff highlighted some small differences between his new boss and Allardyce, the man who brought him to the Stadium of Light. “All of us can understand Big Sam for his decision that he wanted to go for the job, nobody can blame him for that, we had a good time with him but we have to accept it. It is okay for us, and we have got a good choice from the club with the new manager.”

 A brand new era for Sunderland fans with David Moyes taking charge of his first competitive game on Saturday evening. (Image Source: Mirror)

Kirchoff has been tipped to start on Saturday, pending match fitness, alongside Lee Cattermole, with the return of last year’s loanee Yann M’vila still not complete.

David Moyes says Jack Rodwell should have stayed at Everton

New Sunderland boss David Moyes is pleased to reunite with Jack Rodwell, but says he should have never moved to Manchester City from his old club Everton.

David Moyes and Jack Rodwell recently reunited after the Scot was appointed new Sunderland boss just over a week ago. Moyes hopes the midfielder will fulfil his potential he demonstrated as a teenager.

Rodwell made his Premier League debut at just 16-years-old for Everton and was seen to be a future star at Goodison Park, but since his move to Manchester City in 2012 his career has slowly deteriorated. He joined Sunderland hoping to revive his career, but the £10 million man has been hampered by injuries during his two years at the Stadium of Light.

A good chance of reviving his career

The Scotsman will become the fourth manager to attempt to turn the 25-year-old’s career around, but will have the best chance of doing so with the pair knowing each other so well.

 Jack Rodwell playing under David Moyes at Everton. (Image source: Express)

In an interview with the Sunderland Echo, the 53-year-old said: “He’s never really found a level of consistency. He had great potential as a boy, and was a very comfortable football player who could do a bit of everything.”

Wrong path taken

Moyes admits that moving to Manchester City was only a bad thing for Rodwell, and he hoped that his move to Sunderland back in 2014 would kick-start his career. He went on to say: “There needs to be a driven desire to become a better player and that he will to step on to overcome difficult situations.”

Former Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce was a fan of the midfielder, but was only able to play him in just over half of last season’s games down to the player’s injury or lack of match fitness.

Rodwell has featured in pre-season a fair bit, but was left out last time out against Montpellier as an injury precaution. The Black Cats are lacking numbers in midfield and are still yet to bring a new face through the door, which may mean Rodwell could be handed a start come August 13 against his former club Manchester City.

Paul Bracewell and Robbie Stockdale to stay at Sunderland

David Moyes was recently appointed as the Black Cats’ new manager, and the Scotsman confirmed both of his assistants will remain at the club.

Sunderland have seen their fair share of manager’s in recent seasons, and the experienced Paul Bracewell and Robbie Stockdale have seen many come and go. New manager David Moyes confirmed that the pair would stay on with him as a new era on Wearside begins.

Bracewell, assistant manager, and Stockdale, first team coach, were both part of Sam Allardyce’s backroom staff, but since the arrival of Moyes the pair have remained and have worked closely with the Scot in the Black Cats’ tour of France.

 Stockdale and Bracewell alongside former boss Sam Allardyce away at Crystal Palace last campaign. (Image source: The Chronicle)

Speaking at his first press conference as Sunderland boss, Moyes said: “My plan is to keep both Paul Bracewell and Robbie Stockdale, I will make changes in some areas but ideally I’m going to try and go along.”

Moyes shows recognition

The former Everton and Manchester United boss acknowledged the hard work the duo had put into keeping the Black Cats in the Premier League after surviving relegation last campaign. He also said: “I don’t want to disrupt anything because this club has had too many disruptions in the past.”

Sunderland fans have been crying out for a manager to stabilise them as a Premier League side after years of battling relegation, and Moyes may just be that man.

“Let’s see if we can get a wee bit of continuity, and if we can get that level of stability that allows us to progress because that will be the most important thing,” the 53-year-old said.

How will the pair contribute to Moyes’ management?

Both Bracewell and Stockdale will benefit Moyes’ management in different ways.

Bracewell previously played for the club, making over 100 appearances in two spells. He also has managerial experience, managing both Fulham and Halifax Town.

 Paul Bracewell made over 100 appearances for the Black Cats. (Image source: The Chronicle)

As well as Bracewell, Stockdale has brilliant knowledge of the youth sides and will give the new boss an idea of youngsters who may be ready to make the step-up to the first team.

The trio will manage their first competitive match of the 2016/17 season on August 13, when they travel to the Etihad Stadium to play title favourites Manchester City.

 

What can Sunderland learn from their third win of pre-season against FC Stade Nyonnais?

The Black Cats made it three wins in as many games against FC Stade Nyonnais as they recorded a routine 2-0 win.

In their third game of pre-season, Sunderland beat FC Stade Nyonnais 2-0. What points can be taken from David Moyes’ first game in charge?

Pre-season momentum continues

Last season’s gruelling pre-season trip across the pond saw Sunderland fail to build any momentum going into the last Premier League campaign, and although there has been a change to the man in charge of the team after Sam Allardyce left the club, the whole preparations up to now have been key in building the elements that will give Sunderland the best chance of succeeding in the 2016/17 season. This was the Black Cats third win in as many games and the teams Sunderland have come up against have progressively got better in standard, and will continue to do so. Match fitness is the key to building momentum but the fact that the games have ended in victories will also give players confidence.

Moyes assesses squad

This evening’s game saw new boss Moyes get his first chance to see his new side in action. The Scotsman gave individuals longer runouts than in the past two games and will use Wednesday’s game against Dijon to give the players who didn’t get on the chance to do so. Moyes will be piecing together his preferred starting line-up for the opening game of the season against Manchester City as pre-season goes on, as well as looking to make some signings in the coming weeks.

Youngsters shine

Just five of tonight’s starting line-up were regulars in last season’s regular first team squad’s. Michael Ledger, Tommy Robson, Ethan Robson, George Honeyman, Lynden Gooch and Rees Greenwood were all handed starts and impressed throughout the game. Both Ledger and Tommy Robson looked solid in defence as well as looking good in possession of the ball. Honeyman, Gooch and Greenwood all looked lively in attack and defence, but the standout was Ethan Robson, who bossed the midfield and conducted the pace of the game. 17-year-old hot prospect Joel Assoro also came on for Duncan Watmore, who scored both of Sunderland’s first half penalties.

 Duncan Watmore celebrates a goal with his team-mates. (Image source: Chronicle)

Still no sign of Kirchoff?

Jan Kirchoff is still yet to feature in one of Sunderland’s pre-season games and is still being rested as a precaution after the squads gruelling trip to Austria. The German played a huge part in last season’s campaign after joining in January and fans are desperate to see him in action sooner rather than later. As well as Kirchoff, John O’shea, Sebastian Larsson and Jermain Defoe watched from the stands, but are expected to feature in one of the next two games.

N’zogbia to sign on a permanent?

Charles N’zogbia joined the Sunderland first team on the first day of pre-season training as a trialist whilst he reportedly looked for a new club, after he was released from the relegated Aston Villa at the end of last season. The Frenchman has now featured in all three of the recent fixtures, as well as scoring a goal and captaining the club in the second half against Hartlepool United. Whether or not the new boss Moyes will want to sign him on a permanent basis is unclear, but the 30-year-old has definitely caught the eye of Sunderland fans with his first three performances for the club.

Sunderland will play Dijon on Wednesday, Montpellier on Saturday and Borussia Dortmund the following Friday, before travelling to Manchester City on August 13.

 

Rotherham 1-2 Sunderland: Late goal secures Black Cats second win of pre-season.

It’s two in two for Sunderland as they beat Rotherham 2-1 at the New York Stadium.

New manager  David Moyes watched from the stands as his new side continued to build match fitness in their second game of pre-season on Saturday.

Fabio Borini’s volleyed effort could only be palmed into the bottom left corner by the Rotherham stopper and a late goal from trialist, Charles N’zgobia grabbed the Black Cats’s second win in as many games. Rotherham did grab a goal just after half time when Jerry Yates saw his effort find the back of the net.

 Sunderland players celebrate in their new third kit. (Image source: Sunderland AFC)

53-year-old Moyes joined the club on Saturday and became the successor of Sam Allardyce, who became the manager of the England national team after weeks of speculation.

Sunderland dominated the majority of the first half and Borini scored the first goal of the Moyes’ reign when his right footed volley crept past Millers keeper Lee Camp. The goal came 27 minutes in and little else happened up until just after half time, when Yates finished with his right foot, past Vito Mannone just after the interval.

Both sides had chances to take the lead in the second half, but it was the Premier League side who grabbed their second win in as many  games when trialist N’zogbia smartly finished with his left foot, seven minutes before full time.

Sunderland travel to France on Sunday before playing their third game against FC Stade Nyonnais on Monday evening. They then play Dijon FCO on Wednesday, Montpellier on Saturday and then play their final game of pre-season and their toughest test when they play Borussia Dortmund, eight days before kicking off their Premier League campaign.

Rotherham United

Camp, Kelly, Mattock (Thorpe 38), Halford (Forster-Caskey 42), Broadfoot, Wood, Forde, Frecklington (Dawson 69), Ward, Yates, Smallwood (Bailey-King 77).

Sunderland

Pickford (Mannone 46), J Robson, Kone (E Robson 84), Kaboul (Ledger 77), van Aanholt, Rodwell, N’Zogbia, Lens (Greenwood 88), Khazri (Gooch 64), Borini (Watmore 55), Defoe (Honeyman 75).

 

David Moyes appointed as Sunderland manager

The former Everton and Manchester United manager has been appointed as Black Cats manager on a four-year-deal.

After weeks of frustration for the club and its fans with the appointment of Sam Allardyce as England manager being dragged out by the FA, both will now be pleased to see a manager come through the door of Moyes’ experience.

Sunderland have to be massively commended for the way they have acted in the whole scenario surrounding Allardyce and can now finally move on under the 53-year-old.

The Scot has failed to achieve success in his previous two jobs, managing Manchester United, arguably one of the hardest jobs in domestic football, and Real Sociedad who were on the down-slide even before Moyes was appointed.

His most memorable and most successful job yet was at Everton, where he spent 11 years, winning 216 out of 513 games, losing just 159.

 Moyes in charge of  Everton. (Image source: TheEvertonForum)

David Moyes’ managerial career so far
Team	Joined	Left	Games	Won	Lost	Win %
Preston	12 Jan 1998	14 March 2002	234	113	63	48.29
Everton	14 March 2002	1 July 2013	513	216	159	42.11
Man United	1 July 2013	22 April 2014	51	27	15	52.94
Real Sociedad	10 November 2014	9 November 2015	42	12	15	28.57
Total			840	368	252	43.8

Table image courtesy of BBC Sport.

Always first choice manager.

Sunderland chairman Ellis Short said Moyes was “by far and away first choice” to take control of the Black Cats and that he had tried to recruit him several times before. “He is a man whose football pedigree speaks for itself and is someone I have long admired,” said Short. “I have spoken with him on many occasions and I have always been hugely impressed.”He was my number one managerial target for the last five appointments, but his desire to honour existing contracts meant we were not able to bring him to Sunderland previously. To be able to finally welcome him as our manager is fantastic news for the club.”

Career Highlights.

Moyes started his managerial career at Preston North End before moving onto Everton, where he was voted LMA Manager of the Year three times during an 11-year spell. Sir Alex Ferguson chose his fellow Scot to be the new Manchester United boss and his successor when he retired after 26 years in charge at Old Trafford.

Moyes’ desire to do well with Black Cats.

Moyes is clearly happy with being appointed as the new manager of Sunderland and stated so in his first interview. “I am delighted to have joined Sunderland. I am relishing the challenge and excited by the opportunity.”

“I have taken over a big British club with a great support and I’m looking forward to working in the Premier League again.”

Sunderland will hope for Moyes to be a long-term plan and not suffer the same fate as many of the previous managers  have done. The 53-year-old will be the fourth manager in less than three years and will be attending the Black Cats second pre-season game today, but only overseeing in the stands.

PREVIEW: Rotherham United vs Sunderland

Sunderland continue their pre-season campaign with a game against Rotherham United at the New York Stadium.

Sunderland played their first match of pre-season on Wednesday evening, comfortably beating Hartlepool United 3-0, with two goals coming from Jermain Defoe and one from Wahbi Khazri.

The Black Cats now turn their attention to a Rotherham side who are further forward in their preparations for their new season, which starts a week earlier than Sunderland’s Premier League campaign.

The Millers have enjoyed a successful pre-season so far, defeating Parkgate 7-0 as well as beating Miedz Legnica and drawing against Gornik Zabrze in their tour of Poland.

Saturday afternoon will be the first time Sunderland have visited the New York stadium since it was built in 2012. This will be the Black Cats’ final domestic pre-season game before trips around Europe to play various opposition.

Important to remain focused

With the news of Sam Allardyce’s appointment as England manager breaking earlier today, Sunderland will have most of their focus on replacing the 61-year-old. David Moyes is set to be the man to take the job, but Sunderland will still remain focussed on building match fitness and putting on a good show for the travelling fans.

 Allardyce in charge of his last game against Hartlepool United. (Image source: The Mirror)

Team News

Both John O’shea and Sebastian Larsson are still yet to return to the squad after their Euro 2016 involvement, but January signing Jan Kirchoff is set to make his first start of pre-season, after the German was rested in Wednesday evenings game as a precaution. Sunderland will look to give their full side another run out, with the importance of building momentum and fitness clear to see.

Rotherham will include new signing and former Black Cats defender Greg Halford in Saturday’s game. The 34-year-old made just eight league appearances for the Black Cats, before departing in 2009 permanently. Rotherham boss Alan Stubbs is also a former Sunderland player.

 

 

 

Sam Allardyce announced as England manager

After weeks of speculation, 61-year-old Sam Allardyce has been appointed as manager of England and successor to Roy Hodgson.

Allardyce has been favourite to manage England for a number of weeks after a dismal Euro 2016 and today was the day the FA managed to grab their man.

Sunderland played hard ball with Allardyce over a compensation package and rightly so. The experienced Premier League boss managed his last game in charge of the Black Cats on Wednesday evening, away to Hartlepool United where his side won 3-0.

The correct man for the job

Allardyce has consistently proved his worth as manager at domestic level throughout his career, but has still come under criticism and has been labelled as a boring manager.

The FA have been clear in what they want from the new England manager and Allardyce fits that bill. His experience of the game and his no-nonsense ethos makes him the perfect manager for the job.

In his statement, the new England manager said: “I am extremely honoured to be appointed England manager especially as it is no secret that this is the role I have always wanted. For me, it is absolutely the best job in English football.”

He also acknowledged the importance of the nations fans and said he will do his up-most to achieve success.

Replacement needed fast

Sunderland will need to get their replacement manager in as quick as possible and David Moyes is reportedly close to being that man. The former Everton and Manchester United boss will be welcomed on Wearside by fans and looks to be a good fit to replace Allardyce.

 Moyes in charge of Manchester United. (Image source: Sky Sports)

Black Cats aren’t happy

The FA have handled this situation with no great consideration for Sunderland or their fans. Not only has the situation been dragged out for three weeks, but FA chief executive Martin Glenn has consistently kept his cards close to his chest in interviews, leaving Sunderland in limbo with just three weeks to the start of the new season.

Thankfully, Sunderland held out for compensation and released a statement which did not thank Allardyce and did not mention the FA.

Sunderland will play Rotherham tomorrow afternoon in their second pre-season game.

Hartlepool United 0-3 Sunderland

Black Cats cruise to victory against Hartlepool as Sam Allardyce looks set to leave for England job.

Sunderland beat Pools 3-0 tonight in their first game of pre season. Jermain Defoe grabbed two goals. The first came when he beat the defender for pace and finished with ease. The second was a terrific snapshot strike into the top left corner. Moments before Defoe’s strike, Wahbi Khazri made it 2-0 when Defoe’s effort bounced back off the post.

The main talking point was Sunderland boss Sam Allardyce and his imminent departure to become England manager, which was announced an hour before kick off. Allardyce failed to come back out into the dugout for the second half, but many reports suggest he was saying his final farewells to his senior players, who had came off at half time for the youngsters.

Speculation surrounding Allardyce’s future had been circulating for weeks, much to the despair of fans on wearside.

A great first half

The Black Cats couldn’t have asked for a better start to their first pre-season game when Defoe latched onto a long through ball and finished into the bottom right corner past Hartlepool keeper, Trevor Carson.

Wahbi Khazri made it two just eight minutes later after a lovely passing exchange between him and Defoe, who dropped the shoulder and got his shot off which hit the post and was then put in by Khazri who had initially started the move.

Pools manager Craig Hignett feared the worst as it looked like it would be a long night for the League two side. It was then game over when Fabio Borini’s shot was saved by Carson, but fell into the feet of Defoe, who finessed his shot out of reach of the stopper.

Sunderland began to slow the pace down after 30 minutes, but Rodwell found space inside the opposition penalty box and fired into the bottom left, only to be denied by a brilliant save.

No sign of Allardyce after the interval

The Black Cats made 11 changes at the interval, giving the youngsters a chance to showcase their skills. Allardyce was reportedly saying his farewells to senior players and left Victoria Park before 70 minutes to be appointed as new England manager tomorrow. Sunderland fans were left confused as to why the 61-year-old wouldn’t say his farewells to fans at the end of the game and were questioning whether or not that would be the way the romance with Allardyce would die.

 Allardyce all smiles prior to this evenings friendly win against Hartlepool United.

The second half of football wasn’t filled with chances and failed to live up to the first half excitement. Fans did appreciate the chance to see the youngsters in action, despite the little amount of chances created.

The one notable good piece of football came from George Honeyman when he made light work of his man on the right hand side, played a one-two with Duncan Watmore, and dragged his shot narrowly wide of the far post.

The full time whistle was blown and Sunderland fans began to leave Victoria Park, left bewildered of the club’s situation.

HARTLEPOOL UNITED

CARSON, RICHARDS, CARROLL, FEATHERSTONE, NSIALA, BATES, LAURENT, WOODS, AMOND, ALESSANDRA, DEVEDICS

SUNDERLAND AFC

MANNONE, JONES, VAN AANHOLT, KABOUL, KONE, CATTERMOLE, LENS, RODWELL, DEFOE, KHAZRI, BORINI

2ND HALF: SUNDERLAND AFC (11 Changes)

PICKFORD, ROBSON, LEDGER, BEADLING, GOOCH, ROBSON, ROBSON, HONEYMAN, GREENWOOD, N’ZOGBIA, WATMORE

SCORE

0-1, MIN. 7, DEFOE

0-2, MIN. 15, KHAZRI

0-3, MIN. 20, DEFOE