da bet vitoria： Mike Dodds will hope his Sunderland team can pick up another win under his interim management spell tonight, but Daniel Farke's promotion-chasing Leeds United stand in their way at the Stadium of Light as a tricky opponent to overcome.
da gbg bet： Farke's Whites come into the game oozing confidence, playing with a real swagger over the last couple of matches in attack with impressive wins over Swansea City and Blackburn Rovers notched up recently.
Yet, the Black Cats managed to narrowly get the better of fellow Championship playoff hopefuls West Brom last game 2-1 and so won't just roll over and allow the visitors from West Yorkshire to win easily.
Here is Sunderland's predicted XI for the game at home to Leeds, with Pierre Ekwah potentially sitting the home match out…
1 GK – Anthony Patterson
Patterson was Mowbray's regular first-team goalkeeper this season and that didn't change under Dodds who fielded him in goal against West Brom for his first match in temporary charge, the 23-year-old's spot in the side set in stone.
The Sunderland shot-stopper did fail to keep a clean sheet against the Baggies, but he will still be retained for the game against Leeds United in between the sticks regardless.
2 RB – Trai Hume
Trai Hume will also start against the Whites as another crucial figure of the Sunderland defence, standing strong against waves of West Brom attacking pressure last match.
Hume would win eight duels in total against Carlos Corberan's men as per Sofascore, whilst also valiantly launching himself into five tackles.
3 CB – Daniel Ballard
Daniel Ballard was crucial in helping Dodds pick up his first win as interim boss at the weekend, heading in the decisive opening goal to break the deadlock against West Brom.
Ballard wasn't just important in the game popping up with this goal, however, the 24-year-old centre-back was also dominant at the back with seven of his eight duels in the contest.
4 CB – Luke O'Nien
Sunderland's captain continues to be the experienced leader the Black Cats desperately need, delivering another warrior-like performance against West Brom last game.
Luke O'Nien would win four duels in the contest, alongside constantly alleviating pressure on the Sunderland goal in the game with eight successful long balls up the pitch managed.
5 LB – Niall Huggins
Sunderland's Welsh left-back will also more than likely start tonight's game, Niall Huggins playing against his former boyhood club Leeds United with a point to prove.
Huggins wasn't at the races last game against the Baggies whatsoever – unsuccessful with all four of his aerial duels – but he's done enough in other games this campaign to prove he's worthy of being selected again from the start.
6 CM – Jobe Bellingham
Starting the game against West Brom in an unusual striker position, Dodds could move Bellingham back to a more familiar central midfield spot in his line-up versus Leeds tonight.
That would mean Pierre Ekwah would miss out as a direct consequence, Sunderland's number 38 poor against Corberan's Baggies with one off-target effort on Alex Palmer's goal attempted and a lack of authority present in his game throughout with only three of his seven duels won.
7 RM – Patrick Roberts
Patrick Roberts will also be retained by temporary manager Dodds for the home game against Leeds, hopeful that Roberts can be just slightly more impactful than he was versus West Brom when facing Farke's visitors.
Roberts didn't help himself to a goal or an assist but he was a constant nuisance for the Baggies defence to keep tabs on – successful with 50% of his dribbles in 81 minutes, on top of registering three key passes.
8 CM – Dan Neil
Sunderland's star midfielder will start against Leeds also, Dan Neil scoring the crucial second game-clinching goal against West Brom last match with a delicate dinked finish.
Neil was also constantly on the ball attempting to unlock a stern Baggies defence when the game was evenly balanced, accurate with 93% of his passes on the Stadium of Light turf.
9 CM – Alex Pritchard
Alex Pritchard is almost a certainty to start tonight at the expense of Adil Aouchiche, the former Huddersfield Town man singlehandedly dragging his team over the line last game to three points after being substituted into the fray.
Pritchard would assist both Ballard and Neil, the latter a defence-splitting pass that found Neil who then had all the time in the world to casually place a shot past Palmer.
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It would lead to Sunderland Echo football journalist Phil Smith giving Pritchard a 9/10 rating despite only being on the pitch for 28 minutes, describing the free-kick delivery that found Ballard's head for 1-0 as "brilliant" and the second assist as "perfect."
10 LM – Jack Clarke
Jack Clarke tried his hardest to be a livewire against West Brom to no avail, with teammate Pritchard stepping up to the mark instead from midfield to be the sole creative force to help his team win.
Clarke is experiencing a barren run of form at the moment – only scoring one goal now in his last six Championship matches – and will hope he can recapture his scintillating best soon starting with an electric display against former employers Leeds.