We've taken a look at what the managers of Sunderland's rivals are saying about the tight European race?
With just six games to go, Sunderland are very much in the thick of the Premier League’s race for European qualification.
Few would have predicted the Black Cats to be in this position, but a lavish summer spend has fuelled a hugely competitive campaign from Regis Le Bris’ men. As we enter the final sprint, the Mackems sit 10th in the table, just two points behind Chelsea in sixth and only six points adrift of Liverpool in the fifth and final Champions League spot.
That said, it’s a very competitive race to reach the continent, with just six points between sixth and 14th, and eight points between fifth and 12th. With that in mind, we’ve taken a look at what some of Sunderland’s rival managers have been saying about the European race.
Sunderland rivals speak out on European race
Keith Andrews (Brentford)
Brentford and Everton remain locked on 47 points following their 2-2 draw over the weekend, with both sides seeing European football in their crosshairs.
Bees boss Keith Andrews has been fielding questions about taking Brentford to the continent for a while now, insisting back in March that while fans ‘should get really excited’ about the prospect, he is trying to keep the club’s feet on the ground.
"I understand the questions and the angle because we are in those positions right now. My feel and take on it has always been that fans should get really excited about where we are right now because we've worked hard to get to this position and we're not always in this position,” said Andrews.
"That's the reality of where our club has been and where we are now. That's brilliant, but if I start thinking like that, I'll be thinking about what's going to happen in July, August and how we're going to plan a season next year with extra games.
"For me, it's really simple. It's nine games left now and we need to work as hard as we've worked to this point and continue to strive, grow as a group and find ways of winning games if we're not playing particularly well and perform brilliantly. If we can, happy days. "If we continue to do that, hopefully that leaves us in a place where everybody's really, really happy."
David Moyes (Everton)
Everton will be the happier of the two sides from that aforementioned draw at the weekend, given they were the away side and twice came from behind to clinch a point - including Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s 91st-minute equaliser. It’s been a tough few years for the Toffees, battling at the wrong end of the table, but it’s important to remember this club was once a European regular, especially the last time David Moyes was in charge.
Moyes is relishing the fight to return Everton to the big stage, and he’s taking an extra interest in the ability of his players to handle the pressure of this battle, compared to fighting against relegation. “Absolutely, you know, I’d rather that than them be fighting around the bottom end of the league, and having the worries of that. We want it for us to enjoy it, we want the players to enjoy it, and we want to see how they do in this position as well,” Moyes told BBC Sport after the draw in London.
“It’s a test for them as well. Much higher up, can we win the games? We only have to win a few games in the run-in to the end of the season. So, another difficult away game out of the way today, and we’ll take the point and get away with it.”
Fabian Hurzeler (Brighton)
After a dip, Brighton have hit some serious form, winning five of their last six matches - including their last three - with only leaders Arsenal beating them during that time.
Fabian Hurzeler was asked about European talk after the 2-0 win at Burnley last week, and welcomed those outside the group speculating and getting excited. However, he insisted that he and his players are focused more on performances and where they can get even better, rather than any potential finishing position.
“We want it to carry on, but we don’t want to talk about Europe,” Hurzeler said, adding: “So, therefore, we want to talk about performances, how we can improve; definitely there are some things where we can do better. We want to see every game like it's a final, we want to go all in, then we see what happens.”
Eddie Howe (Newcastle United)
Sunderland’s rivals, Newcastle, have endured a dreadful season, with their 2-1 defeat at Crystal Palace on Sunday seeing them slump to 14th in the table. There is still hope that they can reach Europe, but it’s fading fast, and Eddie Howe now knows that they’ll need favours elsewhere, even if they end the campaign on a six-game tear.
“It is slightly out of our hands, I think,” Howe told reporters recently. “The way I look at that is how we perform. We want to try to win every game we have between now and the end of the season.
“Certainly there are no excuses in terms of our preparation for those games now we get a chance to train. We need to see that have a positive effect on the group and that will be our target. Where it takes us, I don’t know.”
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