Sunderland fate in their own hands

Sunderland will go into the last day of the Premier League season with the fate of their survival in their own hands. The pressure was piled on by Portsmouth last night after a 3-1 defeat left the Black Cats staring over the edge.

However, Sunderland are better positioned than a few teams around them but the drama of last day football has seen stranger things happen and the prospect of facing Chelsea could mean an opportunity opens up for the lies of Hull City or Newcastle United.

Sunderland would have wanted a greater barrier than just two points going into their final clash of the season but manager, Ricky Sbragia, is staying positive. He said last night: “We wanted to get a cushion going into the last game but we know what we have to do. It is going to be difficult but we have got to get a win on Sunday.”

Both Manchester United and Chelsea are facing sides in the relegation places this weekend and will likely field strong sides as they owe it to the others battling away. Sunderland will want to make sure they are safe through winning but a determined Chelsea will want to see Guus Hiddink out in style so it could be a case of hoping that Hull or Newcastle slip up.

Sunderland have by far and away the best chance of survival but if both Hull and Newcastle win their fixtures than it will be the side on Tyneside that goes down, which no one expected. It could well replicate the day when West Brom managed to get safe after looking like they were certain to go down, being bottom of the table on the last day.

The relegation battle so far this season has been extremely interesting to watch and it sure to be tense. All Sunderland have to do is get a win, if they draw then they will be looking at goal difference and as harsh as it seems every fan will be hoping that Aston Villa and Manchester United can romp to victories or at least take points that would guarantee Sunderland’s safety.

It would be such a shame to lose either of Newcastle and Sunderland, regardless of the fact that both sets of fans will want to see the other club plummet to failure miserably. Tyneside has produced some of the most passionate football clubs in living memory and if both manage to stay up then we can once again be treated to one the fiercest rivalries in world football next season.

It is impossible to predict what will happen on the last day because something always develops that no one even considered. Sunderland clearly have a very clever and under rated manager, despite the thumping defeat last night, every single person at the club will have the league table worked out and they know what they need to do. If they win the are safe, the equation is as simple as that, the fact their last day opponents are Chelsea will not matter to a single person in a red and white shirt on Sunday.