Sunderland youngsters to take on local sides as pre-season schedule confirmed

The club have confirmed that the U23s will also face League One side Barnsley as they gear up for the new campaign.

Sunderland's senior team are due back from their post-season break on June 22.

Their pre-season schedule has been drawn up but is unlikely to be confirmed until they are rubber-stamped by a new manager. They are likely to train abroad for a week before returning to play a number of fixtures in the UK.

Shortly before his departure, Chris Coleman confirmed that the club planned to finish their preparations with a game against opposition of a similar level at the Stadium of Light.

He said: "The last game, no matter what league we’re in, you want to be playing a certain kind of opposition. “You don’t want to go and play a Dutch team or for them to come here. “They’ll play a style that is completely different to what we face the week after.

"You want to play a Scottish club, or a team nearby where it is physical, hustle, bustle, all that.

“We’re quite far down the line with where we want to go. Martin Bain (chief executive) is fine with it, it is just the last game we need to sort out, really.

“It is pointless us playing someone from Spain or somewhere like that. We get a runaround for 90 minutes, don’t see much of the ball – there’s no benefit to us in that."

U23 schedule

Saturday 30 June – Silksworth Colliery Welfare (venue and kick-off TBC)

Tuesday 3 July – Shildon (Dean Street, KO 7pm)

Tuesday 10 July – Sunderland RCA (Meadow Park, KO 7pm)

Tuesday 17 July – Stockton Town (Behind Closed Doors, KO 1pm)

Saturday 21 July – Whitley Bay (Hilldeans, KO 3pm)

Tuesday 24 July – Barnsley (Behind closed doors, KO 1pm)

Tuesday 31 July – Morpeth Town (Craik Park, KO 7pm)