What Tony Mowbray said about Alex Neil, Stoke City and Sunderland team news ahead of Championship fixture
and live on Freeview channel 276
The Black Cats are ninth in the table following Saturday’s defeat at Coventry but will hope to benefit from not having a midweek fixture.
Stoke, managed by former Sunderland boss Alex Neil, were knocked out of the FA Cup by Brighton on Tuesday and sit 17th with 12 Championship games remaining.
Here’s what was said at the Academy of Light as Mowbray spoke to the media:
RECAP: Tony Mowbray press conference
Key Events
- Sunderland are preparing to face Stoke City at the Stadium of Light this weekend.
- Black Cats boss Tony Mowbray held his pre-match press conference earlier today.
- Sunderland are 9th in the Championship table with 12 games remaining.
Mowbray on Sunderland’s lack of strikers
“I’ve always said it’s very difficult to change the natural habits of footballers.
“From being a very small kid they have done the same thing. They have either been a dribbler, or a physical player who likes to run without the ball, or a great passer.
“It’s very difficult to change the habits in a short period of time because the players will do what they do.
“We have a lot of technical footballers who like the ball to feet, like to manipulate it and play one- twos. In my mind we haven’t quite got the balance to benefit from the really technical players that we’ve got.
“If I go back to Ross Stewart, Ross Stewart likes to run in the space behind defences, he wanst to be slipped in into the gap behind the centre-halves and smash it in the net
“At the moment in my mind we don’t have enough players who want to run without the ball in behind the opposition.”
More to come
That brings us to the end of the broadcast section of the press conference, but Mowbray has also spoken to the written press including our reporter Phil Smith.
We’ll have more from the Black Cats boss, as well as build-up to Saturday’s match, over on the SAFC section of the Echo website.
See you soon.