The Journey Of A Thousand Miles Begins With A Broken Fan Belt And A Flat Tyre.

[berty1978]

Excellent season so far, would be incredible if you can manage to qualify for the Champions league. Chelsea and Man United look like they could have an interesting title race.

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella It would be brilliant if we qualified for the Champions League,will be tight though.It's no longer a interesting race between the two,Chelsea are 6 points ahead of Swansea (2nd) and 10 points ahead of us (3rd).We dropped quite a few point so far and have Chelsea coming up!

[AK22]

This is just ridiculous Champions League football next season, looking at the start you've made

KUTGW!

[AcidBurn]

I think you'll make the Champions League this season, it'll be great to see Sunderland in the top European competition.

[Dexter_Morgan]

I'd say it's a great start but you're only 3rd, expected much better

[B.W.G]

ak22 - Cheers fella It's very competitive if you don't include Chelsea who look like they could walk the league!Champions League qualification can definitely be done!

Acidburn - We have a good shot,it will be one of my steps to getting Sunderland to a global level.We already have linked up with Chinese side Guangzhou who are the biggest team in China.

Dexter_Morgan - Unfortunately,Chelsea are walking it thanks to scoring 70 goals in 19 games!It get's even worse as I'm having the deltablue treatment,I'm in 4th and my rivals are above me!

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - December 2029

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

First thing I will address is the managerial merry go round we've just had in the Premier League!Arsenal sacked Gabriel Torje,they then hired James Milner (Newcastle),Newcastle then go hire Pep Giardiola (Barcelona),Barcelona hire Antonio Conte (Chelsea) and Chelsea hire Jurgen Klopp who was once Arsenal manager!So James Milner was my rival manager,now I have to deal with Pep,Milner please come back soon as I enjoyed getting one over you in the FA Cup a few seasons back!

December was a pretty mixed month,we finished our Europa League group in style as we picked up another two wins to top the group.The league was very unusual,out of the six games we played,we lost two,drew two and won two!We were sloppy against Spurs and we paid the price,Chelsea dominated us and I am grateful we lost by just the one goal!The other games were really scrappy but they are points we need to keep up a challenge for a Champions League spot.Very close as there are 4 points between 3rd and 8th.Chelsea are on their own,not sure who can stop them,9 points ahead and scoring 70 goals in 19 games which is just crazy!

Six games in January and we have two derbies.The first derby comes in the FA Cup as we face Middlesbrough in the 3rd round.The league is very tough as we have to face Arsenal,Man Utd and Newcastle in January,we do face Aston Villa and West Ham so it is possible to get some points on the board in January.I do need positive results though as it is a very tight race for a Champions League spot but we are doing brilliantly and we just need to keep our head up despite being quite inconsistent in the last month.

[cerud]

Very good start to life back in the Premiership!

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella It has been tough at times but my team are still young so it is very encouraging for the future.

[JackJCFC]

Doing very well this season, looks like Chelsea will be hard to catch though. 70 goals in 19 games

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella I've already given up chasing Chelsea's goal difference.The point gap is certainly doable though as there is a 10 point gap with 15 games to go!

[Raware]

Doing extremely well B.W.G since I last visited when you were in the lower depths of the English leagues. Surely a Prem title is on it's way to the Stadium of Light soon?

[deltablue]

Not doing badly.

[B.W.G]

Raware - Thanks mate I'm looking at 2032 onwards,if I can get a team of snipers in place for next season then I will have them situated at Zola Park so we could stand a chance in 2031

deltablue - I feel great,I drew first blood in the rivalry with Pep Guardiola

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - January 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

It was a very tough month but I am ecstatic with how we performed.The two FA Cup games were very tough in which even though I won,I think I have put a massive target on my back as we were the giant killers and now we are the number one target to become a victim of giant killing!I have no idea how we got anything out of the Villa game as we were extremely poor.The win against Newcastle was brilliant and it means we go above them,Pep is now in charge of Newcastle and I have no time for either of them.I was encouraged by the draw against Arsenal and I think we may be able to beat them next season!The final game against Man Utd was a gutsy performance,it was quite the epic game,Owen scored the winner in the 90th minute but our keeper Joesph Hunt was the hero as he saved a 94th minute penalty!

February is a quieter month with the five games,three of those come in the league and the other two in the Europa League.In the Europa League we have a double header against Galatasaray which is winnable and should be entertaining as the Turkish sides tend to do quite well in the Europa League.We have three League games as we face Stoke,Reading and Huddersfield which are all winnable,I will need to gather points to help out with our quest for Champions League football.We will have a FA Cup tie but at the moment it is undecided to who we face as we will face the winners of Fulham vs Man Utd.Time to give the fans something to cheer about!

[Dexter_Morgan]

Good little spell there

[B.W.G]

It was indeed,I am feeling pretty confident for a spot in a Europe,hopefully it will be a Champions League spot!

[AK22]

Plenty of time for Chelsea to have a drama! Just keep on winning

[B.W.G]

They're not going to,there only drama involves losing to Swansea on penalties in the Capital One Cup final

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - February 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

I officially withdraw from the title race as even I think that is too much to catch up on in a short amount of time!Pleased with the Stoke win as well as the Reading win which saw Peter's score twice and get sent off!The Huddersfield game was a massive disappointment in which we were reduced to ten men in the first half after going 2-0 down,I really hope Huddersfield get relegated now as they have ruined our chances.The Cups have seen good progress made on both fronts,we beat Man Utd in the 5th round which is brilliant as it was a nervy affair and was settled by a counter attacking goal from Clerc.The Europa League was a simpler task and Galatasaray were never really at the races and were lucky it wasn't more!

March sees us face Man Utd twice more as we go head to head with them in the Europa League 2 knockout round in which we will play at Old Trafford first.There is only Man Utd and Dortmund who I fear in the competition as I reckon we could beat the rest.As a reward for beating Man Utd in the FA Cup,we have been given a tie against Arsenal at home,my only problem is that we have never beat them!The league has two difficult games in Arsenal and Newcastle but we also face Norwich,Charlton and Colchester so there are definitely points there for the winning,not sure how many points I actually need has it has varied between 59 and 72 for a 6th place spot!We currently have 55 so we could scrape a 6th spot on the lower side of points.No matter what,I will be aiming for a good finish!

[cerud]

Yeah, the title looks a bit of a ways off, but a tremendous achievement this season anyway

[B.W.G]

Cheers mate They are going to be a nightmare but I should be able to keep up better next season as my players develop!

[B.W.G]

Can't say I saw this coming as O'Halloran is a bit of a legend!

Peters breaks O'Halloran's Europa League record and I got to manage them both....so proud

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - March 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

The defeat against Newcastle ruined my whole month as I really hate losing to any rivals,other then that it was a brilliant month.We're making good progress in the league as we are now looking to secure 2nd place.We're five points ahead of Man City who are third and we have a game in hand on them so that will be key,I've already given the title up as Chelsea are just too strong for us this season,I could probably beat them in a one off game like a cup match but for league,it will take a huge amount to shift them from the top.The Cups were brilliant,we knocked Man Utd of Europa League,I am starting to think it is only a matter of time before Roy Keane is sacked by them.We also did the unthinkable in the FA Cup as we knocked out Arsenal which is our first victory against them under my management so at least now I know what it feels like to beat the Gunners!

April is here and we have eight games for the moment.The most important one actually comes in the FA Cup semi-final as we face Newcastle for a place in the final,this is for all the marbles this season as we both have a win a piece in the league!The Europa League quarter finals sees us face Ingolstadt in which I am not too sure about them as they have done well to get this far but I've not actually played them since 2023!The league is really tough for us,we face Man City in the race for 2nd place.We do face Tottenham and Liverpool who are not out of the running yet for a Champions League spot,not really bothered by Birmingham and Burnley as they are games that we can definitely win even with a weakened side!I really want to get top 4 secured by the end of April but I am thinking we stand a better chance going for glory in the Europa League as it doesn't have Chelsea in it!

[elbilly]

Going pretty well, not much you can do about Chelsea, prem title can only be a matter of time and not getting itchy feet

[deltablue]

Looking like a great 2nd place in prospect.

[Dexter_Morgan]

Nearly there

[rancer890]

Doing well B.W.G, you're just giving Chelsea a free pass this season. Next season the title will be yours.

[B.W.G]

elbilly - Thanks mate No need to worry about itchy feet,I won't be leaving to I'll have a league title,Champions League title and a Club World Cup!

deltablue - It does,hopefully I will be able to clinch it without too much trouble.

Dexter_Morgan - We're edging closer,just need to finish it off and not choke

rancer890 - Cheers fella Chelsea are going to be our biggest problem in England,I will be in a better position to win the title next season as our players will be better developed.

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - April 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

We went unbeaten throughout the whole month and we still sit in 2nd with a game in hand which is the most important thing for the club as we need just the one win to qualify for the Champions League.We are the number one club in the North East now,higher then Newcastle in the league and knocked them out in the FA Cup semi-final,welcome to the North East Pep,where you will always be below Sunderland as long as I'm here!We have one foot in the final of the Europa League as we beat Ingolstadt very easily and we have a commanding lead over Celtic going into the 2nd leg of the semi-final.The league has been below average but I put that more down to fatigue as some of the backup players who have played have been below par which has led to some shocking performances like the Burnley game!

We are now into the last month of the season,we need one win in the league to secure Champions League football,we face Man City,Swansea,Cardiff and Chelsea,I reckon we can beat three of the four so we should be able to do it!We have the 2nd leg against Celtic to play in which we have a 4-1 lead,we should be fine if we play to our best,if we do go through then we will face either Dortmund or PSV (Dortmund lead 2-1).We also have a the FA Cup final to play in which we will face Chelsea which is a knockout blow as this is my 3rd FA Cup final and it looks like I will lose to Chelsea again in the final.Chelsea actually beat me in the final when I was Wigan manager in 2017.Time to go and finish the season in style!

[Dexter_Morgan]

Good luck for the last few games:thup:

[JackJCFC]

You've got 2nd place almost certainly, so i guess you can rest a few players for your cup runs if need be which might help.

[B.W.G]

Dexter_Morgan - Cheers fella

JackJCFC - I definitely qualified for the Champions League after beating Swansea and Cardiff,we're also guaranteed 2nd.We also did the double as we beat Chelsea and PSV in the FA Cup and Europa League!Only two league games left which are Man City and Chelsea.

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - May 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

I wanted to end the season on a high and we certainly did so as we won a cup double,secured 2nd place in the league and beat Chelsea twice!The FA Cup was quite an exciting match but in the end we managed to hold off for my first ever FA Cup victory!The Europa League was much more simpler and it could have easily been more than 2-1,I did laugh at the PSV scorer as he is called Juan Juan!A late winner from Keith Peters in the Swansea game and the demolition victory over Cardiff clinched Champions League football for us,we would have beat Man City if it wasn't for a 92nd minute own goal,Chelsea victory was one of the best for the season as we showed what we can do on our day!Saying that,Chelsea would go on to beat Bayern Munich in the Champions League final only days later after losing to us!

[Dexter_Morgan]

Brilliant season :thup:and still on course to win the CL by 2031 as I predicted

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella Don't think it's going to happen,I'll delay it a season just to ruin your prediction

[AcidBurn]

Fantastic season you'll need to find a way to score more goals to catch up Chelsea.

[B.W.G]

Thanks mate Not even sure how to score more goals,I may just go out to try and break Ateba's legs to stop them scoring

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - End of Season - 2029/30

2029/30 Transfers

We let a lot of players go as they were either no good for us or I let them out on loan to run down their contracts as I am looking at a bigger picture for the future as I want to leave a legacy at Sunderland.Beto was the only player who came in as a first teamer and got a work permit even though he hasn't appeared for the Brazilian national team and doesn't have dual nationality.Joel is more a back up player but will loan him out in the future to help his development.The others have been bought in tp help build for the future as part 1 of building a legacy.

Competitions

Barclays Premier League

League Table

An amazing season in which we came 2nd in our first season and qualified for the Champions League,straight into the group stages as well so that means more money for our coffers as I am aiming for a new stadium at some point.We were quite far behind Chelsea who were first but they were pretty unstoppable as the fire power of Many Ateba shot them to the title with 43 league goals.I think we may stand a better chance of standing up to Chelsea next season as they will lose players due to the African Cup of nations which means no Elvis Tetteh and no Many Ateba.It was also good to see us finish above Newcastle and they performed very well so we will have to watch out for them if they do strengthen.

Europa League

Winners!

The playoffs were very easy as we beat HJK 6-1 and Mons 6-2 to reach the group stage.We topped the group stage with a 100% record as we face Feyenoord,Rapid Wien and Tromso.We faced Galatasaray in the 1st knockout and they were lucky the didn't concede more than 4 as we eased through 4-1 on aggregate.We faced Man Utd in the 2nd Knockout Round and it was our most difficult games in the competition,it took late goals in each game to go through 2-1 on aggregate,that is what I call scraping through.The Quarter-finals and Semi-finals were very easy despite the stage we were that,we beat Ingolstadt 5-1 in the quarter finals and beat Celtic 6-2 in the Semi-final.The final was quite simple and if we finished better then we could have won by more then the 2-1 victory.It is also now official now that Sunderland have more Europa League trophies the Man Utd!

FA Cup

Winners!

Managed in England for seven and a half seasons and I've finally managed to get my hands on the FA Cup.We faced Middlesbrough in the 3rd round and they made it very tough despite us winning 3-1,we faced more lower league opposition as we clashed with Southampton in round 4,we did manage to beat them 2-0 but it's clear to me that the lower league teams want to become giant killers when we're involved.The 5th round bought an epic clash to the Stadium of Light as we faced off with Man Utd,we won 2-0 thanks to a later counter attacking goal to help secure victory.The 6th round saw us face Arsenal in a game where we managed to get revenge on them for knocking me out of the Capital One Cup,a Keith Peters brace gave us victory.We faced rivals Newcastle in the Semi-final and it was a brilliant game which saw an injury time winner from Peters to send us through.The final was exciting for the neutrals,we went in at 2-2 after being behind twice against Chelsea,the second half belonged to Danny Haworth as he hit a goal from 25 yards which is a brilliant way to win a game.

Capital One Cup

4th Round

We eased past West Ham in the 3rd round with a 1-0 victory in which we never got out of 2nd gear as we could have easily got more.The 4th Round saw us face Arsenal and we were outclassed in which we very rarely gave Arsenal any threats so it was deserved loss from my point of view.Was a shame that we couldn't defend our trophy but if you don't perform then you won't always win!

Player's Stats and Awards

Best XI 29/30 - Overall Best XI

A quick look at the Player Stats for the season.

Top Goalscorer

Keith Peters - 64 Goals

The Sunderland legend was top scorer again for the season as he hit a new club record of 64 goals for the season which take his career tally to 237 goals by the age of 20.Surprisingly 64 goals in a season was actually surpassed by Chelsea's Many Ateba who hit 71 goals!I for one can't wait for an epic shootout between the two next season.This season saw Peters score 64 goals and provide 12 assists while averaging at 7.79 which is brilliant.He came 3rd in the Premier League Golden Boot and the European Golden Shoe behind Ateba (43 league goals) and Tommy Brooks (Arsenal - 42 Goals).He did however win Fans Player of the Year.

Most Assists

Jay Clarke - 25 Assists

Another storming season off Clarke who topped the assist chart with 25.Clarke started off pretty slowly last season but did manage to pick his form up and he helped us massively in the fight for a Champions League spot.Made 57 appearances and scored 10 times while providing 25 assists and averaging at 7.35 for the season.Clarke has also gone on to make the right wing in the England squad his own as he has already got 12 caps and with the World Cup coming up it become even more.Has Chelsea sniffing around him but there is no way on this planet that I will be selling him to our future potential title rivals!

Special Mention

Aaron Todd

Outshone his partner Andre DaCosta in the past season.Made 60 appearances and scored 6 goals and even provided 2 assists although both those came via route one football!His performances have seen him become more of a regular feature in a very overpowered England side who haven't won anything since Euro 2022!Todd actually took over DaCosta in terms of current ability this season so he is definitely worthy of a special mention.The one interesting thing about Aaron Todd is that he is actually from Newcastle,looks like I get another laugh at Newcastle's expense as Todd came through out youth system!

Manager's Thoughts

An amazing first season back in the top flight which was only beaten due to Many Ateba and Chelsea but we'll overtake them eventually.We did well in the league even though we did drop some stupid points such as losing to Huddersfield despite dominating,outside of Chelsea,the Premier League is very competitive as they had ourselves and Newcastle followed by the Manchester teams.The competitiveness of the league can only help bring the best out of the teams so Chelsea should be very wary of who is closing in on them.I was ecstatic with the double as it was my first FA Cup win despite managing seven and a half seasons in England in total!The Europa League saw our second victory and we now have more trophies than Man Utd in the Competition!

I am aiming to build a legacy at Sunderland which will be seen by our transfer dealings in the Summer as I look to bring in the best youngsters possible to help give Sunderland a stable future,towards the end of the season we started selling the stadium out regularly so hopefully I will be able to get a new stadium announced in the near future if we can stay above 95% average.I aim to leave a legacy after saving them with one that will always be remembered.I am also looking forward to next season as we will be competing with the big boys in the Champions League which will bring in even more money for the club to help us grow.There will be no major signings off me as I have a very good squad at my disposal and will win the Champions League with them eventually despite the fact that I will have to face Chelsea,Bayern,Real and Barcelona!

Season       Club          Division       Country      League       Cup       Continental    Avg.Att       Notes
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2012    Gangneung City    N-League       S.Korea       4th       3rd Rnd        N/A          1618     Playoff Defeat!
2013    Gangneung City    N-League       S.Korea       1st         Q.F          N/A          3540     Playoff Vitors!
2014    Gangneung City    K-League       S.Korea       4th       WINNERS        N/A          3707     FA Cup Winners!
2015    Gangneung City    K-League       S.Korea       3rd       WINNERS      WINNERS        4233     Left 18/11/15
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16   Wigan Ath.     Championship     England       5th       6th Rnd        N/A         13218     Playoff Winners!
2016/17   Wigan Ath.      Premiership     England       8th      Runners Up      N/A         19551     Top half finish.
2017/18   Wigan Ath.      Premiership     England       5th*      3rd Rnd*       N/A         17379     Left in Dec 17
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2017/18    Zenit        Prem.Division     Russia        1st       5th Rnd     Group Stage    42445     League Winners!
2018/19    Zenit        Prem.Division     Russia        1st       WINNERS      WINNERS       50024      Won Treble!
2019/20    Zenit        Prem.Division     Russia        1st       WINNERS     Semi-Final     53101    Resigned at E.O.S
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020/21  Bayern Munich  First Division    Germany       1st         Q.F        WINNERS       68158      Won Double!
2021/22  Bayern Munich  First Division    Germany       1st       WINNERS      WINNERS       70368      Clean Sweep!
2022/23  Bayern Munich  First Division    Germany       1st       WINNERS      WINNERS       69688      Clean Sweep!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24   F.S Stars     S.A Premiership  S.Africa       5th       WINNERS     Group Stage    12177     S.A Cup WINNERS!
2024/25   F.S Stars     S.A Premiership  S.Africa       1st       WINNERS      WINNERS       15289      Clean Sweep!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2025/26  Sunderland       BSB Premier     England       1st       2nd Rnd        N/A         13202       Promtoion!
2026/27  Sunderland     nPower League 2   England       2nd      Runners Up      N/A         16683    Promotion + JPT Win!
2027/28  Sunderland     nPower League 1   England       1st       5th Rnd      WINNERS       24439        Treble!
2028/29  Sunderland      Championship     England       1st       6th Rnd      2nd K.O       27407      Won Double!
2029/30  Sunderland      Premier League   England       2nd       WINNERS      WINNERS       37235      Cup Double!

[cerud]

That's a quality year back in the Premiership. Congrats on the FA and Europa Cups!

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella Was a quality year even if Newcastle made me a bit nervous!

[elbilly]

Nice way to finish with 2 wins over Chelsea, must have tasted just a little sweet. Great league season and Europa title is a very good achievement. All you need now is another Peters and you can outscore Chelsea

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - Pre-Season - 2030/31

Club Information - Facilities - Boardroom Overview - Expectations - Finances

2030/31 Pre-Season Transfers

I let a lot leave permanently as they didn't really have a future and I wanted to continue in moving Sunderland forward instead of stagnating.The only player I''ve let out on loan was Joel to help aid his development and playing in the Premier League will massively help with that.The players who have come in are all rated at 4.5* PA and above as this is continuing the motion to build a legacy at Sunderland so they will never run into past problems again.It is quite an exciting time here at the Stadium of Light as we will become a force to be reckoned with for a long time!

Pre-Season Fixtures

The game against Pisa was a disaster as they actually score there only goal from 1 shot and we hammered in 21 shots without a success.The other games were good for morale so hopefully we can keep the good form going into the season.

The Team

Tactics - Team Report

Key Players

Joseph Hunt - Gk

Aaron Todd - DRC

Danny Haworth - MC/AMC

Keith Peters - ST

A very British core to the team which is brilliant to see as the Premier League has a lot of foreigners playing in it as there is little quality coming through in the 16-18 range.Each of the players are the best in their respective department and with exception to Joesph Hunt,they have been capped internationally.Hunt is just unlucky as he is the number two for England and the number one is only 32 so it could be a while before Hunt is capped.They will be key this season as their performances normally affect how well we do in a game,we can sometimes win if one under performs but if two fail to perform to their best then it gets troublesome.Hopefully they will be able to contribute to help push us towards Chelsea's level.

Manager's Thoughts

I've taken a risk during pre-season as I have not signed anyone who will slot into the first XI as I honestly believe that the players at our disposal are good enough to fight for the title with a bit more development.We should see better performances this season and hopefully an increase in the goal scoring section as I feel that is what did us in last season as Chelsea scored a lot of goals.As for this season,we have a horrible start as we face Chelsea in the Charity Shield and Euro Super Cup as well as face Liverpool,Arsenal and Man Utd in successive league games,I feel the draw is a fix after the amount of times I moaned at the FA after a controversial decision last season.

No major changes have been made as I don't see it necessary to upgrade the facilities just yet as they are good enough for a team in our position.The finances have seen an increase due to new sponsors which helps the income side of the finances.We've done very well on the season tickets as we have sold over 35,000 (not changed on the Club Information screenshot yet) which is encouraging,hopefully we can have a lot of sell outs this season and if I can keep badgering the board for a new stadium then we will be set for the future when they decide to give in to me!This season is all about chasing Chelsea down and trying our best in the Champions League against the big boys.I feel we will do quite well and surprise a few people but we'll see,time to let the fun and games begin!

[B.W.G]

Nice way to finish with 2 wins over Chelsea, must have tasted just a little sweet. Great league season and Europa title is a very good achievement. All you need now is another Peters and you can outscore Chelsea

Cheers fella It was sweet indeed,I feel we don't need another Peters,he will be fighting head to head with Ateba and I can see both scoring 40+ goals again.Chelsea will be my biggest challenge but we will overcome them.....eventually

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - August 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

A very underwhelming start as we should have performed a lot better in the league,we were extremely sloppy when it came down to defence in the game against Liverpool so I am very grateful that our attacking force did it's job.The game against Arsenal was that one sided that we really should have slaughtered them considering we managed 20 shots to their 4 and it took a very late winner to secure victory.The score at the moment between us and Chelsea is 1-1,they won the Charity shield thanks to a controversial penalty and we won the European Super Cup thanks to an offside goal,karma really does have a funny way of acting!I don't think we've done too bad considering we are not even out of first gear yet!

September sees our Champions League group of Espanyol,Ourselves,Porto and Austria Wien,Espanyol are a regular in the top five and have actually won Liga BBVA previously while Porto have won 14 of the last 17 Liga Zon Sagres so it will be a tricky group.We kick off the Capital One Trophy with an away trip to Colchester and I want to do better than last seasons abysmal showing.We have three league games which come against Man Utd,Aston Villa and Colchester,if we can up our performances so far then there is no reason why we can't secure 9 points,it's also encouraging that we have played two of the trickier games and after this month three of them so we are due some easier ties!

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - September 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

That was a good month for us even the Man Utd result was encouraging.We progressed in the Capital One Cup despite fielding a weakened side as we beat Colchester 1-0.We kicked off our Champions League campaign in style as we beat Austria Wien 4-0 to top the group!The league saw a remarkable 4-4 draw despite Man Utd outplaying us but a late equalizer rescued an undeserved point!We pretty much destroyed Villa and Colchester as we have made quite a brilliant start as we sit at the top of the league table ahead of Chelsea.On a side note,I think Leeds are going to struggle,the only way they are not bottom is because Cardiff have gone into administration!

October sees two Champions League games,a Capital One Cup game and three league games.The three league games are Swansea,Cardiff and Reading who are all struggling which is a surprise as I thought Swansea would be higher up the table so I will definitely not be underestimating them as that is dangerous.We are at home to Man City in the Capital One Cup which is definitely winnable as we are now more then a match for them but it really depends on if I field some of our fringe players on how well we will do.The Champions League has give us two home ties as we face Espanyol then Porto who are the 1st and 3rd seeds respectively,I will be happy with avoiding defeats as that will give us money for our finances as it is important that we try and save every penny towards a new stadium now!

[Dexter_Morgan]

Great start to the season:thup:

[B.W.G]

I think we've done okay,we could have done better defensively at times but we're above Chelsea which is the most important thing

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - October 2030

Fixtures

League Tables

Manager's Thoughts

The brilliant start continues are I am ever so happy to see an improvement in our defence.The Champions Leagues saw two fantastic results as we sit on top with 9 points,Espanyol didn't know what hit them and Porto couldn't even beat 10 men as we had Matt Elliot sent off on 40 minutes!The Capital One Cup saw a fantastic result against high flyers Man City as we moved onto the Quarter Finals.The league saw finally hit our stride as we beat Cardiff and Reading convincingly but the Swansea game was one of those games where nothing beats the opposition keeper which was very annoying.We sit on top of the table but this may be an extremely tight season at the top although it is quite funny seeing Liverpool in a potential relegation battle!

November sees one major highlight on the fixture list as we clash with Newcastle for the first time this season in a game which I want to win as I want to show that we are the dominate force in the North East!We do also have games against Tottenham and Man City so it is important that we get results in these games as they will help us keep the pressure up.We also have Stoke and Birmingham to play in the league so it is quite a tough month for league fixtures.We have two games in the Champions League as we travel to Porto then face Austria Wien at home,I feel three points against Austria Wien will see us through to the knockout stages.My major hope is that we can carry on the excellent form we have showed in the past month.

[B.W.G]

Sunderland - Barclays Premier League - November 2030

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

Another couple of brilliant performances in the Champions League has seen us qualify from the group,I was that confident in the game against Austria Wien that I fielded my 4th choice keeper and my 7th choice DC and we still won 7-0,my ambition was to try and make it a bit more competitive!The league saw us pick up 10 points from four games in which we easily beat Stoke and Birmingham,the Tottenham game was an entertaining game with defensive errors on both sides which saw us come out 4-2 winners.The draw against Man City was a relief as I have no idea how we got out of the match with a point,they were extremely good defensively and hit the woodwork three times in what I can only describe as a miraculous point for ourselves!

December is a really busy month for us as we play nine games which is one Champions League game and eight league games.The Champions League is pointless for me as we face Espanyol but we have already qualified as well as topped the group while the Spanish side need at least a draw to ensure they go through to the knockout stages.The league is a mixed bag for us,we have some easier fixtures but we also have the derby against Newcastle which was re-arranged from last month as well as kicking off the month playing Chelsea!I know I will drop points at some point but we have the advantage of having games in hand which could be very helpful.I was expecting to play the Capital One Cup quarter final against Swansea next month but it turns out we are playing that in January!Time to show the league what we are made of if we haven't already!