Middlesbrough vs Sunderland: Prem side to negotiate tricky derby
Published:Middlesbrough and Sunderland meet again at the Riverside Stadium after playing out an entertaining 1-1 draw at the Stadium of Light last month.
The home side, who took the lead away to their Premier League counterparts, are 11/4 to advance to the fifth round of the FA Cup with a win in 90 minutes, but it is worth noting they have won only once in their past eight games in all competitions.
It is 23/10 in the FA Cup betting for the match to result as it did in the initial fixture, meaning we would see a period of extra time that both sides would prefer to avoid.
Martin O’Neill’s visitors though, look a brilliant price at 1/1 to win the match, keeping in mind they haven’t lost to their North East rivals in the past five meetings, and have won eight of the 12 matches since O’Neill took charge in December, including four away wins in six attempts.
A much sturdier defence has been a feature of the Black Cats since O’Neill’s arrival, and having kept clean sheets in their past two games, it wouldn’t be a great surprise should Middlesbrough fail to breach the Mackems’ backline this time around.
It is 7/1 for a 1-0 away victory, while the 8/1 for a 2-0 Sunderland win also looks appealing.
Fraizer Campbell has looked as sharp as ever since returning from injury, and he proved he can score against Middlesbrough in the initial tie, so it is no surprise to see him as 5/1 favourite to score first in this match.
James McClean has also been highly impressive from the wing for the travellers, and after his winner away at Stoke last week, he is 8/1 to score first here too.
For the home side, Lukas Jutkiewicz has the chance to become an instant hero by notching his first Boro goal against some of their biggest rivals, and he is available at 8/1 to score first or last in the game too.
