Sunderland will be at near full-strength according to manager Dick Advocaat for their friendly at Doncaster Rovers on Wednesday night, after the Black Cats finished their preseason tour of North America with a 2-1 win over Toronto FC in the Canadian capital.
Jermain Defoe returned to the sight of his former club and bagged a second-half brace that was enough to secure Sunderland victory, before the squad returned home to continue their Premier League preparations against fellow English opposition.
New signings Jeremain Lens, Younes Kaboul and Sebastian Coates were all absent in North America, with Advocaat opting not to risk them after they only began their pre-season training with Sunderland over the weekend.
However, it is perhaps the two most heralded summer-signings, Lens and Kaboul, who the manager hints were already pencilled in to appear against Doncaster in the sides penultimate pre season encounter.
Advocaat stated – “Lens will definitely play against Doncaster. He’s further along than the others. Coates has only done a week after playing for Uruguay (during the summer at the Copa America). It makes no sense to get unnecessary injuries, but Kaboul could play as well against Doncaster.”
One of the major areas of concern for Sunderland on their preseason adventures saw a worrying trend of a lack in attacking edge from the Black Cats, who were often left wanting in the final third at times against clubs who they were expected to show more against, even if preseason games are meant to be warm-ups.
At times against Toronto they almost looked devoid of any dangerous intent whatsoever, with Jermain Defoe’s quality coming to the fore to secure two goals, which had it not been for his experience and finishing ability, could have been another disappointing outing for the Black Cats in what so far has been a worrying trend of results in the Americas.
Advocaat himself admitted he was left unimpressed with the performance, although he was quick to offer the mitigation that Sunderland have faced a draining spell in North America.
“No, I was not satisfied, but you have to understand that we are at the end of a 12-day training schedule with two sessions a day,” he added.
“The players are tired and you can see it in the way they play. The sharpness is not there.
“Hopefully we can get the sharpness back after a few days’ rest. It was a good exercise, Toronto did really well. But for us, it’s good that we won 2-1.
“We were a little bit down afterwards, but at the end, we have to be pleased with our 12 days.”
Sunderland complete their preseason preparations against Doncaster Rovers at Keapmoat Stadium on Wednesday 29th July, and a testing trip to Germany to face Bundesliga outfit Hannover 96 at HDI Arena three days later, before opening their 2015-16 Premier League campaign at the King Power Stadium against Leicester City.
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Sunderland 2015-16 pre-season results so far:
9 July Darlington 1883 2-4 Sunderland (Heritage Park)
15 July Sacramento Republic 1-0 Sunderland (Bonney Field, Sacramento)
18 July Pachuca 3-1 Sunderland (Bonney Field, Sacramento)
22 July Toronto 1-2 Sunderland (BMO Field, Toronto)
The remaining pre-season fixtures:
29 July v Doncaster Rovers (Keepmoat Stadium)
1 August v Hannover 96(HDI Arena)
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