At 8:30 a.m. ET, tune into NBC Sports Network for live television coverage of this Barclays Premier League match on Sunday, August 21, 2016, at the Stadium of Light.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Sunderland +147
Middlesbrough +200
Draw +210
Over/Under 2.5
Odds Analysis
There aren't many matches this year in which the Black Cats are going to be favored, but this is one of them. Sunderland is set at +147 on the moneyline, a number which isn't all that convincing for sure but is likely going to be the biggest margin of the season.
Then again, Boro isn't going to be just 2 to 1 on the moneyline in many road matches, and it's hard to believe it is going to get all that many points when playing away from home.
The total of 2.5 with -185 vig on the under calls for a lower scoring match, something which wouldn't be a shock in these gritty six-point relegation battles.
Key Injuries
We're just one match into the season, and already, Middlesbrough has its share of injury problems. Marten de Roon was taken off with a hamstring injury against Tottenham to open up the regular season, and he's likely out for the rest of the month. Daniel Ayala, Bernardo, James Husband and Grant Leadbitter are all also out as well for Boro, and there really isn't a firm timetable for a return for any of the four.
The biggest problem which Sunderland has is missing Lee Cattermole with a minor injury. He didn't play against Man City and isn't expected to make his season debut this week either. Jan Kirchhoff and Billy Jones were both dinged up in the preseason and won't likely play this month for the Black Cats.
Recent Form
Sunderland did alright in its first match of the year on the road against Manchester City, but it just couldn't finish the job when push came to shove. Getting a Jermain Defoe goal though, sent a message that this team isn't just going to sit back and get the ball rammed down its throat as was the case for much of last season though, and though the Black Cats didn't get any points in one of their toughest matches of the season, the result might still be valuable.
Middlesbrough was successful in its return to the Premier League by picking up a point against Stoke City. It wasn't a brilliant match by Boro by any stretch of the imagination, but for a team which used to be a standard bearer of the middle of the table in the EPL, the point was a good start to a triumph return to the top flight.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
Boro still has that feel of a second tier team to us. Sure, Victor Valdes is a veteran in net, and there are some names here for sure in Alvaro Negredo and David Nugent up front, but that doesn't mean it's all going to come together in the form of many points.
Sunderland really needs this match, and with Adnan Januzaj here on loan for the season, he could end up playing a crucial role in the success of this club.
Even though Boro got a point from its first fixture and Sunderland didn't, we think the oddsmakers got it right here by lining the Black Cats as favorites, though the under is our favored of the plays given the fact that this could be a tight, gritty affair.
Barclays Premier League Odds: Sunderland 1, Middlesbrough 0
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