In Championship news, Stoke City is gearing up to host Sunderland at the bet365 Stadium. Sunderland’s manager, Tony Mowbray, anticipates facing a highly motivated team when his side travels to Stoke City this weekend.
Mowbray is taking Sunderland to the bet365 Stadium with the aim of advancing their prospects of reaching the top six and seeking retribution for a 5-1 defeat at the Stadium of Light in March. This defeat marked Alex Neil’s first encounter with Sunderland after his move to Stoke the previous August, a match Mowbray would rather forget. At that time, he described Stoke as a team focused on attrition and indicated they had little interest in ball possession.
Mowbray expressed his thoughts in a pre-match press conference, saying, “Stoke is a challenging opponent. Of course, we have Alex Neil… I was going to call it a concern, but it’s not; he’s a highly skilled football manager who made a life decision about his next career move. We had a disappointing result against them last season, and it’s essential to put that behind us and move forward. This is merely our next test.”
He continued, “Stoke is a very intense and well-organized football team. However, for us, the primary focus is on our game style and whether we can successfully apply it against the opposing team, no matter who they are. That’s our objective for the upcoming weekend.”
While much attention has been given to Neil facing his former club, Mowbray emphasized that this won’t be a determining factor on the day.
He stated, “For me, it doesn’t matter. Whether it holds significance for others, I’m uncertain. I’ve been managing for over two decades and have faced Alex’s teams in many matches. They are consistently well-structured, physically fit, and athletic. We’re looking forward to this challenge and the opportunity to find solutions against the team we’re up against.”