Ex-Sunderland manager warns Man Utd ahead of Old Trafford clash as Alan Shearer delivers big match prediction
Sunderland will hope to claim another Premier League win when they visit Manchester United on Saturday afternoon.
Sunderland have rarely travelled to Old Trafford with confidence they can claim a win against 13-time Premier League champions Manchester United.
Yet after securing an impressive 11 points from their opening six games of the season, the Black Cats have full belief they can continue to impress upon their return to the top flight by landing a rare away win at the home of the Premier League’s most successful club.
Of course, not all of that confidence has been gained by their own performances and results over the last two months. The current state of their hosts has been widely discussed across the media as the Red Devils continue to struggle to find momentum under former Sporting CP manager Ruben Amorim. The Portuguese boss failed to coax a serious improvement out of his side when he was appointed midway through last season and has watched on as the Red Devils have won just two of their six league games so far this season.
There has been some speculation Amorim’s future is in doubt - and former Sunderland manager Gus Poyet believes there are more issues at Old Trafford than the man in charge of on-field affairs.
Speaking to Mirror Online, the former Black Cats boss said: "I saw him, especially the last two games, I saw his interviews and you can feel that [he’s frustrated]. You know, it's bad, the situation. But I'm not going to try to be the defending…the judge of the coaches, or the lawyer of the coaches. But Manchester United is confirmed - after Ruben Amorim, it is confirmed that the problem is not the coaches. I'm sorry. Okay, I know it sounds too defensive from the coaches. But when you have six, seven, eight, forget it. Because you have all the characteristics of coaches."
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Alan Shearer delivers Man Utd v Sunderland prediction
Former Newcastle United and England captain Alan Shearer has admitted he has ‘no confidence’ in Manchester United ahead of Saturday’s meeting with Sunderland - but has still backed Ruben Amorim’s side to overcome the Black Cats at Old Trafford.
With pressure mounting on Red Devils boss Ruben Amorim, Sunderland will hope to take advantage of any nerves surrounding the home faithful and boost what has already been an impressive start to their return to the Premier League. As it stands, Regis Le Bris’ men are sitting in the top five of the table and a win at Old Trafford could move them as high as second if results elsewhere go their way. However, Shearer has claimed it will be the hosts that will come out on top, despite conceding his had no belief in the 13-time Premier League champions.
He told Betfair: “Sunderland had a great result last weekend and have made an incredible start to the season. I have no confidence at all in Man United, but I do think they'll beat Sunderland. It also wouldn't surprise me if Sunderland get something and if they do, you'd have to worry for Amorim. Without having any belief whatsoever, I'm just going to say home win.”
Your next Sunderland read: What Granit Xhaka told Régis Le Bris this week and where the head coach wants Sunderland to improve