Analysis: Black Cats impressive againpublished at 17:12 BST
17:12 BST
Phil McNulty Chief football writer
Image source, Getty Images
Sunderland started this campaign as Premier League newcomers, with many predicting they would make a swift return to the Championship.
Instead The Black Cats, under the shrewd leadership of Regis le Bris, have not only survived but flourished as they sit in the top 10 and worthy of mention in the conversation about European qualification.
Sunderland were by far the better side here, only undermined by so many poor decisions in attacking situations that prevented them giving the scoreline a more emphatic appearance.
At the heart of it all was 33-year-old Granit Xhaka, an inspired summer signing from Bayer Leverkusen, who is the glue that gels this Sunderland side together.
Xhaka rarely wastes a pass, is always available, and gives off an air of calm and experience that is vital.
Sunderland saw off Spurs in relative comfort to continue their superb season.
Sunderland 1-0 Tottenham: What Le Bris, Xhaka and Mukiele saidpublished at 17:00 BST
17:00 BST
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Sunderland boss Regis le Bris speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "It's the Premier League and we expected a tough opponent in difficult situations. It was a must-win for them and we did well with good energy. It was really important to have our principles and we found a way to score which was still important."
On Sunderland's goals: "We want to improve our style of play, we still want to enforce our ideas and we still have room for improvement in the final third. Top 10 is a good aim and we have to be consistent. The most important is the improvement."
On next season: "We will prepare next season with the way we play now. After three weeks it was a difficult game and I was a bit worried because you never know what can happen. The lads were consistent and for me that is the next layer."
Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka, speaking to Sky Sports about his side's win: "After four weeks of not being at home, it was so important to give the fans what they needed. We knew before the season that we can beat everyone if we stay like this with the hunger and desire and take the three points."
On facing Spurs with a new manager: "Not the first time we are playing against a team who have changed manager. He [Roberto de Zerbi] has the mentality to win but we knew what we had to do and it was nearly a perfect game."
On Sunderland pushing for Europe: "Before the season, nobody expected us to be where we are. When I signed it was 2% chance of us staying up and now it is over 100%. Give this football club respect. We stay humble and see what we can do until the end."
On whether he is surprised about Spurs being in the relegation zone: "It's not my job to speak about Spurs. I am not a Spurs player. I look after these boys and this football club. We look after ourselves and let's see where we get to."
Sunderland defender Nordi Mukiele also spoke to Sky Sports, about his goal: "In football you have to take a chance and that's what I did. I took the shot and it went in so I am really happy for the performance of the team. The energy is very important after we lost three games in a row. We were at home, it was our tempo and our rules.
"We started very strong and the season is very long. We deserve where we are today because we work hard. Now is a bonus and now we have six games to show where we are. We have to stay humble."
Sunderland kept their sixth clean sheet at the Stadium of Light in the Premier League this season, with only Arsenal (8) and Manchester City (7) keeping more at home in the competition this season. Their 14 goals conceded at home is again bettered only by Arsenal and Manchester City (both 11).
Sunderland have beaten Tottenham Hotspur for the first time in the Premier League since 3rd April 2010, a run of 15 games without a win.
Sunderland v Tottenham: Team newspublished at 13:17 BST
13:17 BST
Image source, BBC Sport
Sunderland make four changes from the side that won at Newcastle United in the Tyne-Wear derby.
Robin Roefs returns in goal in place of Melker Ellborg, while Nordi Mukiele, Reinildo and Enzo Le Fee replace Lutsharel Geetruida, Trai Hume and Chemsidine Talbi.
You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Sunderland v Tottenham" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Chelsea v Manchester City".
Sutton's predictions: Sunderland v Tottenhampublished at 10:15 BST
10:15 BST
What's Roberto de Zerbi going to do with Tottenham and how will he set them up?
I've read about when he went in at Brighton and how Lewis Dunk said it took the Seagulls players a while to get up to speed and adapt to his demands.
The whole situation is just odd, with De Zerbi securing a five-year contract despite only hanging around for more than two years at one of his previous eight clubs.
Good luck to him, but this is a difficult place for him to start.
Sunderland's form at the Stadium of Light has dipped a bit since they lost their unbeaten home record against Liverpool in February, but the Black Cats will be buoyant after beating Newcastle last time out.
If Spurs are going to play the type of football we associate with De Zerbi, they will be open, expansive and take risks - but will they have the confidence to do that?
Sunderland are the team that come into this game with belief. They've had a brilliant season and their incentive now must be to stay above Newcastle in the table.
Sunderland v Tottenham Hotspur: Key stats and talking pointspublished at 13:03 BST 11 April
13:03 BST 11 April
Jordan Butler BBC Sport journalist
Relegation-threatened Tottenham Hotspur make the trip north to Sunderland on Sunday. BBC Sport explores some of the key talking points surrounding this fixture.
All eyes will be on the dugout at the Stadium of Light this weekend as Tottenham's latest head coach attempts to save his new club from a disastrous relegation with only seven games of the season remaining.
"I have a big responsibility," admitted Roberto de Zerbi, who has signed a five-year contract with no relegation release clause. "For me, Tottenham, especially in this moment, is maybe the most important challenge in my career."
One of the many necessary steps towards securing safety for the Italian and his coaching staff will be to inject belief in a side lacking confidence and he will need to quickly bring an end to their 13-game winless streak in the league (D5, L8) – the club's worst run for 91 years.
The 46-year-old can perhaps lean on the fact that Spurs have been significantly better away in the Premier League than at home, with 20 of their 30 points coming on the road.
Does De Zerbi need time?
Some of the conversation around the Italian's appointment has centred on his propensity for slow starts, with time apparently needed to convey his methods to a new group of players, something that Spurs don't have. But at his past four clubs he has largely hit the ground running and he was victorious in his first league match with Sassuolo, Shakhtar Donetsk and Marseille.
The obvious anomaly is Brighton where, not only did he take over in mid-season, but he also failed to win any of his opening five in charge. He did, however, accrue eight points from his first seven games on the south coast and if that form were replicated in his current role it would likely ensure Tottenham's top-flight survival.
An average of 36 points has been enough to stay up since the Premier League switched to a 38-game season in 1995-96. The necessary total stands at 33 points across the past 10 seasons. By that yardstick, one win would potentially be enough for De Zerbi, but even with a victory this weekend his work will be far from done.
Record in reach for Sunderland?
Sunderland achieved the magical 40-point mark with victory over Leeds United in early March and, unlike Tottenham, their top-flight status is all but assured for another year.
Regis le Bris's side can now set their sights on setting a new club record for most points in a Premier League season. They require another 16 to surpass the previous highest total set by Peter Reid's men in 1999-2000. Unlikely given there are 21 points remaining, but not impossible.
Sunderland have endured a dismal recent record against Tottenham in the top flight and they are winless in 15 previous meetings (D5, L10) since a 3-1 home victory in April 2010. Four of their five Premier League victories over the north London club have come at the Stadium of Light, including a memorable 1-0 triumph on the opening day of the 2007-08 season.
Michael Chopra scored a later winner for Roy Keane's newly promoted side that day and the win proved to be very important, as the Wearside club finished just three points above the relegation zone, while Spurs placed 11th. The opposite could well be true at the conclusion of 2025-26.
Le Bris on team news, Europe and facing Tottenhampublished at 15:30 BST 10 April
15:30 BST 10 April
Tasnim Chowdhury BBC Sport journalist
Media caption,
Sunderland boss Regis le Bris has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Tottenham at the Stadium of Light (kick-off 14:00 BST).
Le Bris confirmed Jocelin Ta Bi, Romaine Mundle, Bertrand Traore and Simon Moore will not be available for Sunday. Daniel Ballard and Nilson Angulo are close to returning but will not be ready for Spurs. "The rest of the group are available."
He added that, because of their position in the league, he will not be taking risks with his team: "Sometimes you might think that you can take risks but, if the player gets a new injury, it might take a long time after the second injury [to return], so we didn't rush the process often. It won't be the case for Ballard or Nilson in this situation as well."
On the possibility of his team playing in Europe: "I don't know. Two seasons ago when I first started here, going to the Premier League was too early. We didn't set any goals but we said we will work hard, we will work for our identity. For this season, it is the same. If it is possible, we are ready to achieve the goal. We will see and then we will manage the next goal."
Although there is no outside pressure on Sunderland, he said there is "internal pressure" to keep up performances: "We want to win again at home because we struggled a bit in the last sequence. It's about our standards. The main goal of the season is probably achieved and it's easy to forget this wasn't easy. We showed togetherness and quality. We want to keep the standards."
Asked about midfielder Chris Rigg, Le Bris responded: "He's still young, but he showed exactly what we are talking about - great character, consistency and resilience. He's a great symbol of what we want to develop here. The league is so demanding, you need a strong team and you need great characters on the pitch. He is one of those."
On facing Spurs: "Tottenham are a big club but they have struggled to generate momentum this season and you never know how you create this vicious circle of injuries, efficiency, doubts. It means that this league is unforgiving, really demanding, it is hard to break. They have good quality but when you have doubt it is hard."
On their new boss Roberto de Zerbi: "He is a great coach, has strong experience, good ideas and a clear identity. He will be the best version of Roberto de Zerbi if he is himself, not someone else. So I think he will go all the way and it will be interesting. Performance in football is complex. It's often a question of confidence, belief. The psychology Is important. Probably the most important thing is to implement this belief."
Fear, anger or excitement - how are Sunderland fans feeling?published at 17:09 BST 9 April
17:09 BST 9 April
The Premier League's return this weekend brings trepidation for some and excitement for others.
Football's emotional rollercoaster becomes intense at this time of year, unless of course mid-table mediocrity has taken a grip of things in recent months.
So how are you feeling as a Sunderland fan with just a handful of weeks left to go?
The league form reads: LLDWLW
The next three league fixtures are: Tottenham (h), Aston Villa (a) and Nottingham Forest (h)
Fifth Champions League spot secured for Premier Leaguepublished at 08:19 BST 8 April
08:19 BST 8 April
Dale Johnson Football issues correspondent
Image source, Getty Images
The Premier League will have at least five teams in the Champions League next season after securing a European Performance Spot for the second straight year.
The extra place was confirmed on Tuesday as Arsenal beat Sporting 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie.
Uefa awards an additional place to the two leagues with the best overall performance across the three European competitions.
The race for fifth place in the Premier League, currently held by Liverpool on 49 points, is exceptionally tight.
Just seven points separate Arne Slot's side from 13th-placed Bournemouth.
Chelsea (48) sit in sixth followed by Brentford (46), Everton (46), Fulham (44), Brighton (43), Sunderland (43), Newcastle (42) and Bournemouth (42).
If Aston Villa, who are fourth on 54 points, win the Europa League and finish outside the top four, the Premier League would have six teams in the Champions League.
The same logic applies to Liverpool, who face Paris St-Germain in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday.
If either win a European trophy and finish fifth, then sixth would qualify for the Champions League via the EPS place.
If both win European trophies and finish fifth and sixth, that would put seventh into the Champions League.
Nottingham Forest are in the quarter-finals of the Europa League. They could emulate Tottenham by winning the competition and finishing in the bottom half of the table.
Just like last season, that would create a sixth team in the Champions League for the Premier League too.
'We have to ensure we don't waste the opportunity to progress'published at 10:01 BST 7 April
10:01 BST 7 April
Gavin Henderson Fan writer
Image source, Getty Images
Not playing over the Easter break was a strange feeling, considering it is the first time (I think!) in my lifetime that Sunderland have ever had to sit it out.
If we had actually turned up at Port Vale in the last round, then we would possibly have been at Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea, but we did not, so we were not. Instead, our players and supporters enjoyed an extended break. The players could get themselves back in the Academy of Light as we build up to the visit of Spurs to the Stadium of Light.
While I could not help but look on with envy as Southampton and Leeds reached the semi-finals, it did allow me some time to reflect on the journey this club has been on.
In particular, I was looking at goings-on in the Championship over the weekend and I was incredibly thankful that we are no longer a part of that whole circus anymore.
Middlesbrough fans must be tearing their hair out - they had automatic promotion right in the palm of their hand, and it looks like they are going to blow it. It is more likely that Ipswich or Millwall will take their place, and I never really fancy the chances of the team who drop away from the top two when it comes to the play-offs. You need momentum, and they certainly do not have it.
It is a reminder of just how brutal it is trying to claw your way out of the EFL. Sunderland's promotion story was a complete fairytale, and I completely understand that the path we took is not a particularly well-trodden one - there were many sliding-door moments during last season where things could have easily gone in a different direction, and I am so incredibly thankful that we somehow got the job done.
We have had a brilliant season in the Premier League and we have to ensure that we do not waste the opportunity to progress. I never want to see us back in the EFL ever again, because with each passing year it gets harder and harder to escape it, and the test now for Sunderland's hierarchy is to ensure that we keep on improving to the point where our foundations are solid, and we can withstand just about anything.
As much as I enjoyed last season's journey, I hope we never have to go through that much stress and drama ever again!
'Put your ego aside and use mistakes as learnings' - O'Nienpublished at 09:34 BST 2 April
09:34 BST 2 April
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Sunderland defender Luke O'Nien sat down with BBC Radio Newcastle to look back over his eight years with the club.
Reflecting on the highs and lows of his time, he discussed how he has grown from his debut to now.
He explained: "The thing I'm most proud of is, I've made many mistakes between my debut and now and there was the one on derby day. But if you look at the reaction and the work I have done since then, I didn't just manage to help steer the ship that game but we limited them to very few chances at all.
"Those are examples of how I was as a human being then, then fast forward seven or eight years and I have had to dig deep on one of the toughest days, in one of the toughest environments, to turn it around when really needed.
"As human beings we make mistakes and it is important we face them head on, put your ego aside and use them as learnings to keep moving forward."
Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds here or by pressing play on the clip above
'Be Sunderland' - Ghisolfi's simple demandpublished at 17:41 BST 1 April
17:41 BST 1 April
Media caption,
Director of Football Florent Ghisolfi has revealed a simple instruction for staff and players during a return season to the Premier League - "be Sunderland".
The 41-year-old left a role as sporting director at AS Roma last summer before he joined the Black Cats in July as they prepared for their Premier League return.
Speaking to BBC Radio Newcastle about why he came to Sunderland, Ghisolfi said: "The potential of the club. I'm a builder, I like to build.
"It's not only build, here it was to reinforce - the identity, the foundations - continue to build and I like that.
"The potential of the club [I liked] because of the facilities, the fan base, the atmosphere, the identity and the culture. I was very optimistic in the capacity we had to stay in the league and for the retention was not an easy challenge."
As part of the preparations for their return to the top flight, Ghisolfi oversaw an overhaul of the squad in a summer transfer window that had 15 new arrivals at the Stadium of Light.
It has proved successful so far with Regis le Bris' side sitting 11th in the table and comfortably away from relegation, having been one of the favourites to go down at the beginning of the campaign.
Asked about the goals of the club, he said: "I don't like to speak about ambition. I'm always asking to everyone in the club let's be focused on who we are. To be the best version of ourselves, the best version of Sunderland and this is the most important.
"The first words to the team and to the staff was 'no objective'. We didn't ask for retention [in the league], top 10. No objective, just be the best version of Sunderland.
"It means every day what we are, who we are, how we are working all together. This is the big focus we have - be Sunderland.
"We don't care about the result. Be Sunderland, and after that, we'll be proud."
Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds here or by clicking play on the clip above
'You can't succeed alone - it is impossible'published at 15:25 BST 1 April
15:25 BST 1 April
Media caption,
Sunderland boss Regis le Bris says he is "really proud" of the work of everyone at the club and the success they have achieved while he has been in charge.
The 50-year-old has been at the helm since the summer of 2024 and has taken charge of 86 matches, winning 36, drawing 24 and losing 26, which gives him an overall win percentage of 42%.
In less than two years, Le Bris has taken Sunderland from the Championship to the Premier League, keeping them away from relegation threat this season and guiding them to a memorable league double over Wear-Tyne derby rivals Newcastle.
"This job is never finished," he told BBC Radio Newcastle.
"You always have something to do, to improve, so you can spend 24 hours per day and it's not done.
"I'm proud about not only the results, it's the way we work together. I think it's a massive collective work, and as a manager I'm really proud of that because you can't succeed alone. It is impossible.
"Here in Sunderland, we have a really good team. I speak about the players, of course, but also about people around the team in the building. So it's a big achievement so far. We want to get better, but it's not too bad."
With Le Bris the 21st permanent manager since Peter Reid 31 years ago - with 11 caretaker managers also during that time - the Frenchman was asked about the pressure of this managerial position at Sunderland.
"Probably the job is a bit unpredictable because you can't control everything," he said.
"When you are lucky you find the right environment for your own style, to find the right place, and when it's done you have to work hard. Sometimes it's not aligned and you can work hard but it won't work, but in this situation it worked well."
Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds and by clicking play on the clip above
'It feels crucial we don't waste opportunity to kick on'published at 12:28 BST 31 March
12:28 BST 31 March
Gavin Henderson Fan writer
Image source, Getty Images
It has been one week since Sunderland beat Newcastle and what a week it has been.
I am not really sure when the buzz will end, but I am still not bored with watching all the content surrounding the game - it is all still absolutely brilliant.
That length of time that both clubs have had to wait for the next game will be crucial, I imagine, to where our respective seasons go from here. The fortunes of Sunderland and Newcastle are unavoidably linked. We are both basically in the same position in the table and have ambitions to finish in the top eight.
Hopefully, the knock of confidence that Newcastle will have undoubtedly suffered will lead to their league form spiralling, as that can only be a good thing for us, while I would like to think that winning such a massive game will galvanise our squad.
We need to get the Stadium of Light back to being the fortress that it was earlier in the campaign, as that will be key to where we go from here. That means the fans must do their part and back the team until the end.
The good feeling that is coursing through our veins right now needs to be harnessed. This is the type of result that should really breathe new life into our season and, with a raft of important players returning to the squad after the international break, it feels crucial that we don't waste the opportunity to kick on.
There is a top-10 finish and potential European football firmly within our grasp and, together with these players, we cannot waste the opportunity to make even more history. We know we are good enough, but it is about having belief and growing our momentum to get us over the finish line.
It's time to knuckle down and do something special.
The former Linfield and Ballymena defender has risen from League One to the Premier League with the Black Cats.
The 24-year-old will call upon his experience with pressure whilst preparing for Northern Ireland's 2026 Fifa World Cup play-off semi-final with Italy in Bergamo tonight.
"It was definitely different," Hume said.
"The emotion going into the game and the pressure and what it meant. Playing in that game and getting promoted to the Premier League is life-changing, for your career, financially for your family, it changes everything.
"I think going through that experience, it was nervous and exciting, but you learn from that and you gain that experience and all the games after that come that little bit easier."
Image source, Getty Images
