Sunderland V Everton at Stadium of Light : Match Preview

11 September 2016 16:34
Sunderland V Everton - view commentary, squad, and statistics of the game live.


David Moyes planning long-term rebuilding of Sunderland

David Moyes will use Everton as his model as he attempts to build a bright new future at Sunderland.

The 53-year-old Scot spent 11 years at Goodison Park and worked patiently to establish the Toffees in the top half of the Premier League table and took them into Europe despite working to relatively modest budgets.

On Monday evening, he will welcome Everton to the Stadium of Light, where he is hoping to do the same thing with the Black Cats, and he knows it could take just as long.

Moyes said: "We are not going to be the biggest spenders, we are going to have to take time to attract the level of player here that we want and as long as everybody is aware it's going to be at least three or four transfer windows, it's going to take time...

"Football may have changed a wee bit, even from 10, 12 years ago, but the fact is unless you are going to have a big pot of cash and you can do it in one hit - and even if we could, Sunderland still probably couldn't attract that level of player just now.

"But we will attract that level of players in the years to come. That's the goal and that's the plan."

Moyes has fond memories of his time on the blue half of Merseyside, where he inherited a squad which included the likes of Paul Gascoigne, David Ginola, Duncan Ferguson, Thomas Gravesen, Alessandro Pistone, David Weir, Alan Stubbs, Kevin Campbell and Tomasz Radzinski and gradually rebuilt it.

He said: "It had to evolve because I didn't like that this was a club which was only going to avoid relegation and thought that avoiding relegation was good enough.

"It was a long time in doing it because (chairman) Bill Kenwright gave me B#5million a year to spend at Everton - that was the budget - or if I could generate some other money myself, so I had that to work with and I was happy to do that.

"I had to go on the training ground, I had to organise and I had to coach, I had to build it up and I think if you look at the team we had at the start compared to the team when we left, it was a team full of international players, it was a team which was actually competing.

"In the last eight years, we finished in the top eight and really there were only one or two bad years - we finished 17th one year - and apart from that, the journey was terrific.

"It was a great time and I really enjoyed it, and that's why I see a big similarity to Sunderland."

Midfielder Jan Kirchhoff could return to the Sunderland squad.

The German is yet to make a senior appearance this season because of a hamstring problem, but played 90 minutes for the club's Under-23s in midweek.

Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford is fit after withdrawing from the England Under-21s squad with a thigh strain, as is defender John O'Shea following his return to action for the Republic of Ireland after a hip injury.

New signings Mika Domingues and defender Jason Denayer could also be involved, but Didier Ndong is yet to arrive on Wearside because of administrative issues and striker Victor Anichebe is not match fit.

Meanwhile, current Everton boss Ronald Koeman has no doubt Moyes has a tough rebuilding job on his hands at Sunderland.

Koeman said: "With what he did at Everton, I think he had a great time. He showed he was a great manager for Everton in all the years he was in charge.

"Sunderland is a different club. The last few years they have been struggling - and there is what he said himself about relegation."

Koeman - who has seen Everton take seven points from three games since he arrived in June from Southampton - added: "Sunderland are also a club that have signed new players, and the team will be different than it was two weeks ago.

"It (Monday's match) is a difficult one - we need to be prepared for that."

Koeman has also emphasised the danger specifically posed by Sunderland striker Jermain Defoe, who has scored two of his team's three league goals this campaign.

"He is so dangerous, always with his movements behind the defenders," Koeman said of the 33-year-old frontman.

"If there is space and a chance, normally it is a goal and, of course, we need to prepare for him because he is still showing his productivity as a striker.

"And it is not only Defoe - if we stop the midfielders in passing to Defoe, then you don't get that problem."

Forward Enner Valencia could make his Everton debut following his deadline-day loan switch from West Ham.

Defender Seamus Coleman is ready for his Toffees comeback having recovered from an ankle problem.

Darron Gibson and Tom Cleverley should also be available again after recent knocks, but fellow midfielder James McCarthy remains out after undergoing groin surgery.


Source: PAR