Sunderland Preview: Feet Back on Ground

Us

The bad news is that Thomas Vermaelen has still yet to recover from the very minor ankle knack he sustained on international duty.  His absence, now running to three matches, means that Squillaci and Koscielny will continue their fledgling partnership.  They have done well together so far, Squillaci has slotted in to the first team seamlessly in his first couple of outings.  Sunderland today threatens to be a much tougher challenge than Bolton or Braga have yet provided for the duo, though, so a lot remains to be seen.

No matter how intently the centre back pairing is watched today though, it will be nothing to the scrutiny that Manuel Almunia will be subject to.  There is a discomfiting feeling around at the moment that people are just waiting, almost willing Almunia to make a mistake.

Oh, sure, everyone is saying the right thing “if he’s our number one he’s got my support”.  Grudgingly.  But the instant he makes a mistake, costs us a goal, or god forbid a point, the ‘support’ will turn to cries of anguish.  Loud enough to cause a disturbance in the force, as if millions of voices cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.  Except they won’t shut up about it.

But he has started well enough this season, and will of course keep his place.  The other injury news is that Diaby remains unavailable.  He and Vermaelen should be back for the West Brom game next weekend, while Bendtner, Walcott, van Persie and Ramsey are further away.  No new injuries were picked up against Braga, which is a minor miracle, and means Wenger could pick an unchanged side for the first time in, erm…ages.  He won’t though, and I expect something like this:

Almunia

Sagna – Squillaci – Koscielny – Clichy

Cesc – Song – Rosicky

Nasri – Chamakh – Arshavin

The only change that looks likely is Wilshere dropping to the bench.  As good as he was in that breakthough performance against Braga, I don’t think Sunderland are likely to allow him the same time and space to work his magic, so a well rested Rosicky will be a good replacement.

The only other question is whether Nasri did indeed come through his comeback unscathed on Wednesday, and whether Arshavin is due a rest having started every game for us, and his country, so far this season.  Should a replacement be necessary for either, I hope it’s Carlos Vela.  I’m dying for the Mexican to be given a proper chance this season, though I doubt away at Sunderland would be anyone’s idea of easing him in gently.

Them

As for the Sunderland team, we all know that Lee ‘The Foul Machine’ Cattermole will be missing through suspension, but they will also have Michael Turner and possibly John Mensah both unavailable.  That means they could be missing three of their most influential defensive players and, crucially, leaves Titus Bramble available for selection.

Not that it will change how they play today.  Irrespective of the personnel, Bruce will have his team well drilled and determined not to let us run amok as we did in midweek.  Expect a physical encounter from a team who will ‘get amongst’ us, and let us know they’re there, in an attempt to knock us off our stride.  No use complaining though, we have to overcome and win.

After all, it’s all fun and games until someone suffers a double compound leg fracture…oh, wait…