Ahead of next week’s important Tyne-Wear derby, Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce has started the mind games by claiming there is more pressure on him to win than there is for his Newcastle United counterpart, Steve McClaren.
The Black Cats have won their last five games against their rivals but dropped to the bottom of the Premier League table following a 1-0 loss away to West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Newcastle United rose out of the relegation zone after a resounding 6-2 victory over Norwich City at St. James Park, but Allardyce believes the heat is on him to keep Sunderland’s great derby run going.
“The pressure’s on me, more than it’s on Steve,” Allardyce stated. “We’ve won the last five, so I don’t want to be the one who doesn’t win it.”
With a win, Allardyce will become the fourth successive Sunderland manager to beat the Magpies in his second game in charge, following in the footsteps of Gus Poyet, Paulo Di Canio and Dick Advocaat.
However, Sunderland have lost six out of their last nine games and are yet to win a league game this season. The former West Ham United manager thinks it’s up to the players to turn the results around.
The 61-year-old said: “Only the players can make everyone smile next week. They have been struggling but won the last five games against Newcastle. They don’t need me to coach them this week!”
