Sunderland prepare for an all-North East showdown on Monday night, as they make the short trip to Teesside to face Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium (KO 8pm).
The Wear-Tees contest sees Head Coach Tony Mowbray return to the territory where he is widely regarded as one of the host club’s favourite sons.
Team news
There are expected to be no further fitness concerns ahead of Monday’s trip to face Chris Wilder’s side.
Dan Ballard continues his rehabilitation from a fractured foot, whilst Leon Dajaku remains a doubt.
Jack Clarke is expected to be fine despite his precautionary withdrawal with a calf knock late on in Wednesday’s win over Rotherham United.
New recruits Jewison Bennette, Edouard Michut, Abdoullah Ba and Amad are all in full training and may be considered.
Opposition
Neither Sunderland nor Mowbray are any kind of stranger to Middlesbrough, who at just 23 miles away offer comfortably the Black Cats’ shortest away journey in the league this season.
A stalwart of Boro for much of the 1980s, Saltburn-born former central defender Mowbray racked up a gargantuan 424 senior appearances for his local club, and later managed a further 153 matches.
The Teessiders are now under the stewardship of Chris Wilder, who previously rocketed Sheffield United to successive promotions before a top-half finish in their debut Premier League season. Finishing seventh in the Championship table last term, this is now the club’s sixth straight season at this level – as of Friday, they currently sit 20th in the division, having won just one of their seven league matches so far.
Monday’s meeting will be the 140th competitive battle between the two clubs, of which the Lads have so far won 61 to Boro’s 50. The last showdown between the two clubs came in the Championship in February 2018, the sides playing out a 3-3 draw at the Stadium of Light.
Around the grounds
Written ahead of the weekend’s Championship fixtures, September begins with the following schedule:
Friday
West Brom vs Burnley
Saturday
Norwich vs Coventry
Millwall vs Cardiff
Swansea vs QPR
Rotherham vs Watford
Preston vs Birmingham
Luton vs Wigan
Blackburn vs Bristol City
Sunday
Reading vs Stoke
Huddersfield vs Blackpool
Hull vs Sheffield United
Monday
Middlesbrough vs SAFC
Tickets & coverage
Tickets for Monday’s trip to Middlesbrough are now sold out to away supporters.
This match will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Football, with coverage beginning at 7:30pm. Consequently, SAFSee streaming will be unavailable.
Social media coverage will be active as usual on the club’s official pages on Twitter @SunderlandAFC, and Instagram @sunderlandafcofficial.