YORKE TALKS EUROPE

Former Sunderland player and treble winner with Manchester United Dwight Yorke has had his say on Sunderland's Europa League campaign and how the Lads will cope with the extra games and intense travelling that comes with Thursday night football. We spoke to Dwight via Reviant.

PROMOTED TEAMS HAVE AMBITION

"Sunderland are going to be mindful of that, as these teams are coming up and they want to finish as high as possible. They want to do well to make sure, like I said, that teams like Hull, Ipswich, and Coventry stay up."

DESERVED TO FINISH 7TH

"Sunderland have exceeded expectations and people say they’ve overachieved. I thought they played well and deserved to be there."

TOO MUCH TO HANDLE?

"But the problem that comes with it is when you go into Europe, there are extra games. Can the club and the team manage it? It’s all well and good wanting all these wonderful things, but can you deal with it? This will be a real test for them. Sometimes you can lose your focus because you get into these European competitions and you get distracted. Results might be going better in that league than the Premier League, and you’re losing focus."

PREM SURVIVAL THE PRIORITY

"So, they’ve got to get their ideas together very quickly. I’m sure the Premier League and retaining their status there is always going to be their number one priority, so I don’t see that changing. They will accept being in Europe, and it’s good for the club and the fans, but it can backfire if they’re not very careful, and I think they will be mindful of that. There’s nothing worse than achieving such a great status last season only to be relegated from the Premier League the following season."