Sunderland and Swansea City will meet at the Stadium of Light at the weekend after experiencing contrasting starts to the Premier League season.
The Black Cats have been beaten twice and have already conceded seven goals, while the Swans have impressed with their displays against Chelsea and Newcastle United.
Sunderland
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It has been a miserable start to the season for Sunderland, who have lost both of their opening Premier League matches and currently sit bottom of the table.
The Black Cats began their campaign by suffering a 4-2 defeat against Leicester City, and it got even worse a week later, as they were booed off pitch by their own fans in a 3-1 loss to Norwich City.
Following their latest defeat, manager Dick Advocaat called a meeting with his players to discuss their problems and try to find a solution.
The Dutchman may also be questioning his decision to stay at the club, after initially leaving at the end of the last campaign once he had guided them to safety.
They only managed to finish three points above the drop last time around and an improvement on their four home wins this season is vital.
That tally was the lowest number of wins by any team in the division, and the club also leaked 53 goals, so additional defensive reinforcements to add to the captures of Younes Kaboul, Sebastian Coates and Adam Matthews this summer may be on the manager's agenda.
Recent form: LL
Swansea
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In stark contrast to the poor form of Sunderland, their opponents this weekend have enjoyed an impressive start to the campaign.
Swansea were handed a tough assignment in their opening league fixture against Chelsea, but they twice came from behind to claim a well-earned 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge.
Due to the controversial events that happened in that match, including the red card that was shown to Thibaut Courtois and the fallout between Jose Mourinho and his medical staff, the performance from the Swans was largely overshadowed.
They followed up that win by easing to a 2-0 victory over Newcastle last Saturday, with Bafetimbi Gomis and Andre Ayew both finding the net for the second game running.
The two forwards look to have struck up a great understanding, and Gomis in particular has shone since Wilfried Bony left for Manchester City in January, scoring seven goals in his last eight appearances for the club.
An improvement upon the eighth-place finish that they managed last term seems to be a realistic aim and Garry Monk will be hopeful of continuing the good work he has done at the club.
Recent form: DW
Team News
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Sunderland could make a number of changes to their side as they look to pick up their first points of the season.
John O'Shea may be restored to the centre of the the defence, while there could be a full debut for right-back Adam Matthews.
Jordi Gomez is also expected to return, but they will be without Adam Johnson, who is facing several weeks out of action with a shoulder injury.
Meanwhile, Swansea have no fresh injury worries and could stick with the same team that beat Newcastle last weekend.
However, Monk may be tempted to recall Ki Sung-yueng to the starting lineup, after the South Korean missed last weekend's match with a hamstring problem.
Sunderland possible starting lineup:
Pantilimon, Jones, O'Shea, Kaboul, Aanholt, Larsson, Cattermole, M'Vila, Lens, Fletcher, Defoe
Swansea possible starting lineup:
Fabianski, Naughton, Williams, Fernandez, Taylor, Shelvey, Cork, Montero, Sigurdsson, Ayew, Gomis
Head To Head
The last meeting between the teams in February ended in a 1-1 draw, with Ki salvaging a point for the Swans after Jermain Defoe's strike.
The reverse fixture also ended in a stalemate, and five of the eight Premier League clashes between the teams have finished level.
Just one of those games has been won by Sunderland, which was a 2-0 victory at the Stadium of Light in 2012, where Stephane Sessegnon and Craig Gardner were on the scoresheet.
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We say: Sunderland 1-2 Swansea
Sunderland's poor form has been well documented and Advocaat will be looking for a strong response from his players after their woeful showing against Norwich. They will not have an easy task against an in-form Swansea outfit, who will be aiming to take advantage of the situation. The Black Cats should be tighter at the back than last weekend, but we think that the visitors will have too much quality and claim the three points.
Alex Meyers
