Source: Telegraph
Sunderland must beat Chelsea or else says Teemu Tainio
The Wearside club have not beaten one of the so-called 'Big Four' since they returned to top-flight football two years ago under then manager Roy Keane but Tainio has insisted Sunderland must put that right at the Stadium of Light against Chelsea.
Tainio has issued a rallying call of sorts to make sure that fifth-bottom Sunderland ensure their own survival with three points that will guarantee they stay above Hull and arch-rivals Newcastle who occupy the final relegation spot above Middlesbrough and already doomed West Bromwich Albion.
The former Tottenham player spoke out after his team wasted an opportunity to banish their relegation fears in their penultimate game of the season at Portsmouth on Monday night when they lost 3-1.
Defeat the stage is set for a nerve-jangling 90 minutes when Guus Hiddink's FA Cup finalists head to the North-East.
'We cannot look for any excuses,' Tainio said. 'We have had more than enough chances to win our last two games and make the club safe.
'We are bitterly disappointed not to have the points we need, but the only thing now is to believe we can beat Chelsea.
'It is not the finish any of us wanted, but this is what we have left to do and we have to face a big challenge.
'The other teams have tough games also, but we do not want to come off the pitch on Sunday asking what the other scores are. We have to get the job done ourselves.'
'If Sunderland are to triumph this weekend then they will have to take a leaf out of Portsmouth's book and stop being so wasteful in front of goal, according to the Finnish international
'We did better at Portsmouth than we did at Bolton with forcing a few saves, but we were not clinical enough,' Tainio added.
'Portsmouth have shown how ruthless you have to be in the Premier League.
'They had a very small number of chances – perhaps four or five – but they scored three goals and punished us.'
