Sunderland vs Burnley; The FA Cup Third Round
Sunderland vs Burnley. The FA Cup Third Round.
Stadium of Light.
Sunderland v Burnley preview: Joey Barton set for second Clarets debut
Saturday 7 January 2017 15:30, UK
Joey Barton could make his second debut for Burnley when they take on Sunderland in the FA Cup third round on Saturday.
Both sides have their sights set on Premier League survival, but the Clarets can afford to have more of a go in the Cup as they sit 12th in the table, eight points clear of Sunderland in 18th.
"There's no guarantee on how much of a part he plays but he's in the pack," Dyche said of Barton. "The expectation is just for him to come back in and be a valued part of the squad.
"He came back in because I felt he deserved the respect of coming back in and training with us. He's come back in and showed us he wants to be part of it again."
Team news
Sunderland will be without Lamine Kone, Didier Ndong and Wahbi Khazri. The three have now linked up with their respective countries ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations and will be unavailable for several weeks, while midfielder Steven Pienaar will miss out once again this weekend with a calf injury.
Full-back Billy Jones returns to contention after a one-match man, while midfielder Jason Denayer is back in training following a hamstring strain, but striker Victor Anichebe (also hamstring) is still out and joins Jordan Pickford, Jan Kirchhoff, Paddy McNair and Duncan Watmore (all knee), Lee Cattermole (hip) and Lynden Gooch (ankle) on the sidelines.
Tom Heaton should make way in goal for either Paul Robinson or Nick Pope for Burnley, while loanees Patrick Bamford and John Flanagan have been made available by Chelsea and Liverpool and could make rare starts.
Opta stats
This will be Sunderland's first home game in the FA Cup since January 2015, while the are unbeaten in five in the competition on home soil (W4 D1).
The Black Cats have won just one of their last five FA Cup meetings with top-flight opponents (D1 L3), however their only win did come at the Stadium of Light (1-0 v Southampton in 2013/14).
This will be the first FA Cup meeting between the teams since February 1979, when Burnley won 3-0 in a fourth round replay at Roker Park. That 3-0 win was the Clarets' last away win at Sunderland, drawing two and losing five since.
The Black Cats have kept four consecutive clean sheets in the FA Cup on home soil.
Sam Vokes has had a hand in four goals in his last five FA Cup outings for Burnley (three goals, one assist).
