AMID all the furore about Newcastle United’s below-par start to the season and the frenzied speculation surrounding Alan Pardew’s future at St James’ Park, Sunderland’s performances since the start of the campaign have been somewhat overlooked. Yet one-and-a-half months in, and it’s hard to argue that the Black Cats have been any better than their struggling rivals.

The league table shows they’re one point better off, and their home games, against Manchester United and Tottenham, have certainly been tougher than Newcastle’s. They’re still searching for their first Premier League victory though and, unlike the Magpies, they’re also out of the Capital One Cup. It’s hardly been a stellar start for either side.

The major concern from a red-and-white perspective is that many of this season’s failings are grimly familiar because they’re the same issues that almost saw Sunderland relegated last term. Even Jozy Altidore was admitting that history was repeating itself earlier this week, and having pledged that there would be no need for another “miracle” this season, Gus Poyet is already in danger of becoming embroiled in another protracted battle against the drop.

Chief among the complaints is a lack of creativity and goalscoring threat, a problem that extends way beyond the start of Poyet’s reign, but which has arguably been more acute than ever in recent matches.

Sunderland have scored five goals in five league games so far, hardly a catastrophic return, but one that masks some deep-rooted attacking issues that will become increasingly damaging unless they are addressed.

None of the Black Cats’ Premier League goals have been scored by a striker, with Altidore’s strike in Tuesday’s League Cup defeat to Stoke City representing the only success by a centre-forward this season. Steven Fletcher has missed the last two league games through injury, but neither he nor Connor Wickham have found the target yet, and in truth, neither has really looked like breaking their duck.

The Northern Echo:

The departure of Fabio Borini has not been adequately addressed, and somewhat predictably it increasingly looks as though Poyet’s interminable pursuit of the Liverpool forward badly hampered his ability or willingness to make alternative improvements.

Borini is not an out-and-out striker, but his threat cutting in from the left-hand side added balance to Sunderland’s attacking last term and while Ricardo Alvarez might develop into a useful addition, his more traditional wing play means he will never be a like-for-like replacement for the Italian.

Fletcher and Wickham have both looked isolated on occasion this season, so perhaps Poyet should consider fielding them together as a genuine strike pairing, particularly in home games. To date, however, that is not a tactical ploy he has looked willing to embrace.

Sunderland’s forward weaknesses would not be as much of an issue if their side was bursting with creative midfield options, but much of this season’s approach play has been cumbersome and predictable.

The central-midfield axis of Jack Rodwell and Seb Larsson has not really worked, with neither player getting forward often enough to support the lone striker. There is a lack of pace and creativity when the two players play together, with neither looking particularly comfortable as a defence-unlocking ‘number ten’. Might Emanuele Giaccherini or even Adam Johnson be better suited to the role?

Johnson’s form is another pressing issue, with the winger continuing to only exert an influence in fleeting spells. As the most naturally-talented member of the Sunderland squad, he should be bending the course of a game to his will, but instead he disappears for long periods and fails to trouble his opposite number.

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Why? Often it’s because he’s far too easy to mark when he constantly looks to cut in from the right-hand side, and having been stationed on the right flank for the best part of two seasons, it’s high time that Johnson was given an extended run back on the left.

That would enable him to beat his full-back on the outside and deliver crosses into the centre, something that both Wickham and Fletcher could potentially thrive on.

Behind that, the defence pretty much picks itself and is generally reliable, although a lack of depth in the central areas remains a concern with Sebastian Coates’ Sunderland career having been a succession of false starts so far.

This is not a great Sunderland side, but the same can be said of every team in the bottom half of the table, and there is no reason why the Black Cats should not be comfortably clear of the relegation zone come May.

As things stand though, they are exhibiting many of the failings that plunged them into trouble prior to last season’s ‘Great Escape’. And the fact that Newcastle have been every bit as bad, if not worse, should not disguise that fact.

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THE League Cup is one of the most derided competitions in football, but it rarely fails to serve up excitement and incident, with this week’s third-round matches a case in point.

Liverpool and Middlesbrough combined to produce one of the most memorable penalty shoot-outs imaginable, Southampton shocked Arsenal at the Emirates, Newcastle conceded a stoppage-time equaliser but hit back to beat Palace. All great games.

The Northern Echo:

Integral to the drama was the element of knock-out, something that is becoming increasingly alien to football as the biggest clubs do everything they can to protect themselves and avoid a shock.

With the Champions League and Europa League adopting group formats that make the first half of the competition extremely dull, the League Cup provides the only knock-out football this side of Christmas. For all its failings, it should be cherished as a result.

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SPORT doesn’t get much better than the final day of the Ryder Cup, and provided Europe and the USA are reasonably well matched after the fourballs and foursomes, Sunday’s climax at Gleneagles should be one of the highlights of the year.

The Northern Echo:

I’d be surprised if the US side was as bad as some are predicting, with the likes of Phil Mickelson, Rickie Fowler, Jim Furyk, Jordan Spieth and Matt Kuchar having featured close to the top of the leaderboard at this year’s Majors.

Zach Johnson is another US player to keep an eye on, but Europe should still have too much over the course of the next three days.

The domestic contingent of Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood has hogged the pre-tournament headlines, but I fancy Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson and Martin Kaymer to be every bit as influential. I’ll take Europe to win by three points.