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Premier League Team Report Cards

By Rucker Haringey

Jul 29, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney (10) kicks the ball against the Paris Saint-Germain during the second half at Soldier Field. Paris Saint-Germain defeats Manchester United 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 29, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney (10) kicks the ball against the Paris Saint-Germain during the second half at Soldier Field. Paris Saint-Germain defeats Manchester United 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports /
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Can Jermain Defoe provide enough offense to keep Sunderland up? Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
Can Jermain Defoe provide enough offense to keep Sunderland up? Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports /

Sunderland-D

They’ve played the stay in the Premier League free trump card by bringing in Sam Allardyce and now they just have to see if it happened soon enough for their survival. The good news is that the Sunderland defense has been alright through 12 matches. Most of their best individual performers are on that side of the ball. That should play right into Allardyce’s conservative style of play.

The real issue I have with Sunderland is they don’t have enough skill in attack. Jermain Defoe plays entirely too much up top on a team where he isn’t even the best Jermain (that honor goes to Jermain Lens). Steven Fletcher has managed to contribute four goals on the season, but if you think he’s the answer then you need to re-read the question. Sunderland gets a D because they find themselves squarely in the drop zone despite having enough talent to finish comfortably outside the bottom three. They may still finish there under Big Sam, but it’s going to be a long march.

Next: Does Aston Villa get credit for firing Tim Sherwood?

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