Meet the opposition | Sunderland
As Swansea City prepare to take on Sunderland, we take a closer look at the Black Cats.
What’s their story?
Established in 1879, Sunderland were one of the founding members of the Football League in 1890.
They have been English champions on six occasions and victorious in the FA Cup twice, the most recent of those successes coming in 1973 when they produced one of the great shocks in the competition's history by beating Don Revie's Leeds United 1-0 at Wembley Stadium, whilst plying their trade in the second tier of the English pyramid.
After spending much of the current century occupying a place within the Premier League, recent times have seen Sunderland drop into League One for a four-year stint.
Play-off success under Alex Neil ended that spell in the third tier and saw them return to the Championship, where Tony Mowbray continued their upward trajectory, helping them reach the play-offs.
They tailed off at the end of last term, but have already secured a top-six finish this season.
How’s their form?
Strong. The Black Cats have lost just one of their last seven games in the Championship, most recently playing out a goalless draw at Norwich City in midweek.
They have won four of those games, which has seen them guarantee themselves a place in the play-offs at the end of the campaign.
They have lost just once on home turf in the league this season, with that sole loss coming against Hull City in February.
Who’s the gaffer?
Regis Le Bris. The Frenchman was appointed Sunderland boss in the summer of 2024, and he could hardly have wished for a better start to his time on Wearside.
The 49-year-old was a defender during his playing days – and he was capped by France at youth level – as he featured for Rennes, Laval and Ronse before making the move into coaching.
He held youth coaching roles with Wasquehal and Rennes, leading the latter’s under-19s to a national Championship before joining Lorient in 2012.
There he guided the under-17s to championship success, while also helping bringing through the likes of Matteo Guendouzi and Illan Meslier.
Le Bris moved up to first-team level in 2022 and led Lorient to a top-10 finish in Ligue 1 before departing the club in the wake of relegation at the end of last term.
Who’s the captain?
Luke O'Nien was handed the armband last season having put pen to paper on a new long-term contract at the Stadium of Light.
The defender or defensive midfielder started his career in the youth ranks at Watford, making a solitary league appearance for the Hornets, while also having a short loan spell at Wealdstone.
He joined Wycombe after a successful trial in 2015, and went on to help the Chairboys secure promotion to League One.
He joined Sunderland at the conclusion of the 2017-18 season and has made over 300 appearances for the Black Cats.
O'Nien helped them secure promotion from League One and EFL Trophy success in 2022, and made the step up to Championship level with a number of assured displays.
Who are the key men?
Teenager Chris Rigg has been a revelation for the Black Cats since graduating to the senior ranks in January of 2023.
Rigg first joined the Academy of Light when in primary school and worked his way through the ranks to make his first-team debut in an FA Cup third-round tie against Shrewsbury Town.
At the time he was training with the first-team squad just a couple of days a week as he was still in school.
He went on to become the club’s youngest-ever goalscorer when netting against Crewe in the Carabao Cup at the start of the following season when aged just 16 years and 51 days. It also made him the youngest scorer in the League Cup’s history.
England age-grade international Rigg has shown maturity beyond his years and has become a Championship regular, adding to his fan favourite status with an audacious backheel finish against Middlesbrough earlier this season.
Wilson Isidor is Sunderland's top scorer so far this season with 12 goals to his name, and he also has two assists.
The French forward initially joined the Black Cats on loan from Zenit St Petersburg last summer, but that deal was made permanent in February following a string of eye-catching displays.
His pace and work-rate has made him a nuisance for opposing defenders, and the mobility of Isidor and a number of other players has been a key part of Sunderland's gameplan.
Having been on the books with Rennes as a youngster, Isidor made his senior debut with Monaco and spent four years with the club before making the move to Russia with Lokomotiv Moscow.
His time in Moscow also included a loan spell with Zenit, and his season there included a treble as they won the Russian league title, the Russian Cup and the Russian Super Cup before he arrived on Wearside last summer.
Northern Ireland international Trai Hume has been a near ever-present for Sunderland this season, impressing whether featuring on the right or left side of defence, or in more advanced roles.
The 23-year-old, who was born in Ballymena, had spells in the youth ranks with Ballymena United and Linfield and made his senior debut for the latter.
He played in the Champions League and Europa League qualifying rounds before moving to Sunderland in January 2022.
Hume helped the Black Cats achieve promotion from League One later that year, and featured regularly in the Championship as they got to the play-offs the following season.
He has remained an integral figure ever since, and has been one of a number of players to thrive under Regis Le Bris with Hume having three goals and six assists this term.