Micky Gray makes Sunderland, Leeds United and Burnley survival prediction after ‘top class’ start

Former Sunderland defender Micky Gray believes his old club have made a hugely impressive start to life back in the Premier League – and insists their fearless style under Régis Le Bris can keep them up.

Speaking on TalkSport, Gray compared the current Sunderland side to the Peter Reid team he played in that finished seventh in both the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 campaigns.

“Well, I think what we don’t want is a scenario like we’ve had for the last two seasons – a Championship side getting promoted and then going straight back down,” Gray said. “The three sides that have actually come up, albeit Burnley’s results haven’t been great, have all had tough fixtures.

“They’ve played well in those games. I was at Old Trafford when Burnley played Manchester United, and they could easily have got something from that match. Against Liverpool, they could have hung on for a 0-0 draw – it was a late goal that beat them. So Scott Parker is doing something right, and it will turn around for them.

“But if I go back to when we got promoted with Peter Reid in 1999-2000, we had two seasons where we finished seventh and seventh. Peter kind of said to us, ‘Right, this is how we’re going to box four or five games off – this is the amount of points we can aim for in these blocks.’

“At the start of the season, he told us to give ourselves a platform by getting points on the board early. That way, if we went into a game we were expected to win but didn’t, we could fall back on the points we already had. We looked at it that way, but we went into games with absolutely no fear.

“When I watch Sunderland play right now, it’s got that same feel about it – there’s no fear in the players. They’re all enjoying themselves, they’re going out to express themselves. It’s organised, but when they get into the final third I think Régis Le Bris is telling them: ‘Go and express yourself. Go and do what I see you do every day on the training ground – but do it in the Premier League.’

“The Sunderland supporters have all bought into it and they’re having an amazing time. I look at Leeds and Burnley the same, but it’s key what you mentioned there – home form is absolutely massive. Look, I’m not going to sit here and say Sunderland won’t be in a relegation fight by the end of the season – I’m not that silly.

“I think Leeds United and Burnley will be down there as well. But you look at Wolves, West Ham, Brentford – you don’t always know what you’re going to get from them week to week. There are going to be other sides down at the bottom, which makes it a much more competitive fight than the last two seasons. But what I’ve seen so far from Sunderland has been absolutely top class.”

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When asked if he believes the Black Cats will survive, Gray was confident – but warned that the Africa Cup of Nations could prove a pivotal challenge. “I think they will, I really do. I think they’re going to get enough,” he said. “The big thing for me is the AFCON, which runs through December and January.

“They’ve got nine, maybe ten players who could go to the tournament – that’s going to be a huge test. It depends how many games Sunderland have to play without their so-called best eleven. If they can get through that period, they’ll give themselves a real good chance.”

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