Former Celtic star wants Sunderland FA Cup progress to 'cap a fine season'
A former Premier League winner has delivered his prediction ahead of Sunderland's FA Cup fifth round tie at League One club Port Vale.
Sunderland are overwhelming favourites to claim a win at League One strugglers Port Vale and progress into the last eight of the FA Cup for the first time since 2014.
The Black Cats have already claimed a penalty shoot-out win at Premier League rivals Everton and edged past Championship side Oxford United to secure their place in the fifth round of the competition and they discovered their opponents after Vale produced a shock win against Bristol City earlier this week.
Despite their obvious struggles in the league, Jon Brady’s side have surpassed all expectations in the FA Cup by seeing off Maldon & Tiptree, Bristol Rovers and Fleetwood Town before their win against the Robins set up Sunday’s home tie with the Black Cats. Brady has already warned his players of the size of the task they are facing as they look to produce their biggest shock yet - and he hinted the Regis Le Bris’ side could have issues with the pitch at Vale Park.
Speaking earlier this week, he said: “It will be the ultimate test but we are looking forward to it. Our pitch is tough to play on, but it’s tough for us to play on too. To get the win at the end made it more dramatic. We could have been up earlier but to get the one we did, it seemed to roll over the line slowly.”
But how could Sunday’s tie go and will the Black Cats avoid a major cup upset to progress to within 90 minutes of a Wembley semi-final. BBC Sport pundit and former Premier League winner Chris Sutton has delivered his prediction and it makes for interesting reading.
What has Chris Sutton said about Port Vale vs Sunderland?
Writing in his BBC Predictions column, the former Blackburn Rovers and Celtic striker said: “No-one can tell me that Vale Park is an easy place to go because when I took my Lincoln City side there in 2010, we were 3-0 down inside 15 minutes and Vale had missed a penalty by then as well. Still, we only lost 4-0 in the end, which felt like a victory on the bus afterwards. I was going to stop and get my players a crate of beers for the journey home - but maybe if I had done that on the way there, we would have done a bit better.
“Port Vale have done brilliantly to get this far, because they are having a terrible time of it in League One. Lincoln have already beaten them this season, probably because I'm not their manager anymore. Sunderland are another team who I would like to see go far in the FA Cup, because it would cap a fine season. Vale are in the fifth round for the first time in 30 years, and I wish them lots of luck... but I don't see them being in the hat for the quarter-finals. Sutton's prediction: 0-4”
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