Saturday 16th August 2025
Burnley v Sunderland - Premier League
Turf Moor Kick-Off: 15:00
Tickets & Match Coverage
Tickets: Tickets are sold out.
TV/Stream: Full live match coverage is unavailable in the UK - but we’re on Match of the Day later!
Radio: Full live match commentary available via BBC Radio Newcastle (not online)
Don’t forget to follow the blow-by-blow account of the game on the Roker Report Twitter feed (@RokerReport) and check out the player ratings after the full-time whistle atwww.RokerReport.sbnation.com!
The build-up...
I ended the Sundrland section with these words last week, “we’ve paid our dues to be here, back in the Premier League. Let’s enjoy it”, and well, we did.
Last week was worth waiting for in so many ways. Watching the new signings look like they’ve been here years combined with the three goal scorers being players who helped us get here in the first place was something pretty special.
But, and there is a but. We could do with backing it up. In seasons gone by where we’ve struggled to beat the drop, the main thing that was lacking was putting consecutive results together. You could go back through the years where we’ve gone down and got the odd win against the Manchester Uniteds, Arsenals, and Liverpools, only to then lose the next four or something.
As we’ve been told countless times since last week, there are question marks over Graham Potter’s West Ham United, but we can only attempt to beat what’s in front of us, and we did it pretty convincingly. But, if we were to pick our first away day in terms of attempting to pick up points (rather than which grounds you’d like to visit early on…), I’m sure most of us would have picked a trip to Burnley.
But herein lies where there is potentially a bit of pressure, where we feel if we’re serious about staying up then avoiding defeat at places such as Turf Moor is something we should be doing, but looking at the character of this squad you wouldn’t be surprised if they make the trip to Lancashire expecting to take all three points.
In terms of the starting XI, you would think it would be harsh if Le Bris shuffled his pack other than Alderete coming in for Seelt at the back to partner Dan Ballard; otherwise, a bit of the same again would do very nicely this weekend.
Sunderland’s French head coach Regis Le Bris applauds fans on the pitch after the English Premier League football match between Sunderland and West Ham United at The Stadium of Light in Sunderland in north east England on August 16, 2025. Sunderland won the game 3-0. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or ‘live’ services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Sunderland’s French head coach Regis Le Bris applauds fans on the pitch after the English Premier League football match between Sunderland and West Ham United at The Stadium of Light in Sunderland in north east England on August 16, 2025. Sunderland won the game 3-0. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or ‘live’ services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)
AFP via Getty Images
If Burnley are relegated this season and Scott Parker lasts until beyond the final day, and does it in a way where he isn’t really all that pragmatic with his tactics, do you think he’ll be considered for one of the top jobs in Europe? You don’t think he will, I hear you say?! Well, that is a surprise…
Because that’s exactly what happened the last time Burnley were in the Premier League, Vincent Kompany stuck to his guns, Burnley went back down, and he buggered off to take the top job at Bayern Munich. It’s nice work if you can get it.
But, Parker was the man to succeed him and although he got 100 points and finished second on goal difference, even though they conceded only 16 goals all season (almost half of what Leeds conceded and around a third of the goals we did), the Clarets didn’t really win plaudits for being exciting in the way the went about their business.
Quite rightly in my book, the retort should be “who cares?!”, but in the end, people do. Just see Sean Dyche, Tony Pulis and Sam Allardyce. Doing solid jobs at various clubs, but in the end, they want to do it better. But maybe the way Parker sets up his Burnley side might be the perfect way for approaching the Premier League, and they stay up this season?
Looking at the last four seasons, each one has ended up in either promotion to the top flight or relegation from it, and they strive to break the cycle this year and end their stay in the void that now exists between the two top divisions. Maybe they should make one in between for the likes of Burnley - I just hope we don’t join them.
They’ve persuaded Kyle Walker to join them on their quest to stick around, and in their opening game against Tottenham Hotspur, my first thoughts when I saw the result may have deceived me when I presumed it was a routine home victory. Reports and highlights suggest Burnley put up a fight and were just lacking an end product.
It’s been tight on our last couple of visits to Turf Moor, and I don’t expect anything else this afternoon.
Burnley Manager Scott Parker during their Premier League match at Tottenham Hotspur last weekend
Burnley Manager Scott Parker during their Premier League match at Tottenham Hotspur last weekend
CameraSport via Getty Images
The betting...
The bookies have the Lads at 9/4 to win the game and the Clarets are favourites at 13/10 and the draw is 11/5.
Head to head... at Burnley
(All competitions)
Sunderland wins: 16
Draws: 17
Burnley wins: 29
Sunderland goals: 61
Burnley goals: 107
Last time we met... at Turf Moor
Friday 17th January 2025
Championship
Burnley 0-0 Sunderland
Sunderland: Patterson, Hume, Mepham (Ballard), O’Nien, Cirkin, Roberts, Neil, Bellingham, Le Fee, Rigg (Mayenda), Isidor Substitutes not used: Moore, Hjelde, Samed, Jones, Aleksic, Aouchiche, Ogunsuyi
Burnley: Trafford, Roberts (Sonne), Humphreys, Cullen, Egan-Riley, Esteve, Anthony, Laurent, Flemming (Sarmiento), Brownhill (Koleosho), Foster (Barnes) Substitutes not used: Hladky, Pires, Egan, Worrall, Rodriguez
Attendance: 21,041
Wilson Isidor takes a second penalty when the two sides last met at Turf Moor
Wilson Isidor takes a second penalty when the two sides last met at Turf Moor
Getty Images
Played for both...
Chris Waddle
Waddle became one of the best players in the world in the years after leaving Newcastle for Spurs in 1985. He became the third most expensive player in the world when Marseille took him to France for £4.5m in 1989.
Sheffield Wednesday and Trevor Francis brought him back to England at the age of 32 for £1m in 1992. After four years he was released from Hillsborough, and after brief spells with Falkirk and Bradford City, joined Sunderland in our bid to survive relegation from the Premier League on deadline day 1997.
After seven games, one relegation and one unforgettable goal, Waddle joined Burnley in the summer of 1997.
Chris Waddle
Chris Waddle
Getty Images
Prediction… Burnley 1-1 Sunderland
I went for a score draw against West Ham United, and we won, so I’m going for a score draw today - I think that’s how it works.
It’s going to be nervy with neither side wanting to lose this one, and they’re going to be tight, and it could well end goalless, but I’m going for a low-scoring draw.
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