All three promoted teams are surely happy with their start in the Premier League, but Leeds United’s strong start has been dwarfed by Sunderland’s.
When Leeds were promoted from the Championship with 100 points and the league title, they watched on as Sunderland dramatically snatched promotion at Wembley against Sheffield United.
The Black Cats then capitalised on their opportunity by selling major assets to fund a huge summer window spending spree.
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All three promoted sides have reached double figure points tallies from their opening nine games. Also, all three were victorious at the weekend.
Leeds were first with a 2-1 win against West Ham, before Sunderland secured a stunning late win at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea, while Burnley enjoyed likewise late scenes at Wolves.
Chemsdine Talbi scored Sunderland’s dramatic winner at Chelsea. (REUTERS/David Klein)
For Regis Le Bris’ side, it’s the latest in a growing run of impressive results, seeing them fourth in the table after nine games. On Saturday evening, they were sitting second before Sunday’s results.
Match of the Day’s coverage revealed that no promoted side in the past decade has been relegated from a position as strong as Leeds’ after 10 games (11+ points), let alone Sunderland’s.
Sunderland issue progress update that Leeds United could only dream of
We should be totally content with how Leeds have started back in the Premier League. Not only are we proving that the gap between the top two divisions isn’t too big, but also that we have what it takes to survive the drop.
Sunderland’s form is superb, though, and their update following victory at Chelsea is something Leeds have historically been incapable of replicating:
“Taking over the capital,” they wrote on X. “We are unbeaten in our last 14 away league games against London sides – a run stretching back to April 2018.”
Leeds, meanwhile, have to go back to September 2023 for their most recent league win in the capital. That fixture being a 3-0 win at Millwall during the early stages of Farke’s time at Leeds.
No wins in London? No problem for Leeds United right now
Stuart Dallas’ drunken “No wins in London? No Problem” post after promotion back in 2020 is proof that you don’t need to find consistency in the capital to get over the line.
Leeds have lost in their first two trips to London this season – Arsenal and Fulham – but have shown more than enough to stay in the division.
It would be great if we could find the same success as Sunderland in the capital going forward, as there’s a few crucial opponents down south.
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