At the end of a week that started grimly with a 2-1 home defeat to Middlesbrough before getting slightly better with a League Cup win and the loan signing of Atletico Madrid's Javier Manquillo, new Sunderland manager David Moyes has a final chance at Southampton on Saturday to end his club's poor August record in the Premier League.
Six years have passed since Sunderland last won a league game in the first month of the season. Darren Bent's last-minute penalty against Manchester City put a team then managed by Steve Bruce on the way to a respectable finish in 10th place.