Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray is hopeful adversity has helped gel his team together as they prepare for their Championship play-off semi-final showdown with Luton.
A dramatic final day of the regular season saw the Black Cats sneak into the final play-off spot after goals from Amad Diallo, Alex Pritchard and Jack Clarke secured a 3-0 win against Preston.
Their place was then cemented after Blackburn mounted a stunning comeback against Millwall to end the Lions’ hopes of a top-six finish.
Sunderland’s path to the play-offs has been made all the more remarkable given the injuries they have faced throughout the season and Mowbray admitted it has been a “frustrating spell”.
He told a pre-match press conference: “I think because of the nature of the way the injuries have piled up, they’ve all been long-term injuries and all been one on top of one another in pretty crucial areas of the pitch.
“It’s been a frustrating spell for us, we’ve talked about losing Ross (Stewart) early in the season and losing goals, but goals haven’t really been a problem for us with the players that we’ve got.
“We’re sitting here now about to play against a pretty physical, strong, direct team who are very connected and work extremely hard for each other without really any central defenders.
“I hope it’s gelling us together, the adversity of it to bring in a team tighter together.”
Sunderland have been without Ross Stewart since February, with the striker having been absent for an early part of the season, while Elliot Embleton and captain Corry Evans also remain out.
Injuries have also affected the squad defensively with Danny Batth and Dan Ballard sidelined, but there are concerns about whether Dennis Cirkin and Lynden Gooch will be involved.
The pair were substituted off against Preston on Monday and a late call may be made as to their involvement.
Mowbray said: “Neither of them have trained, they might train tomorrow, we’ll have to see and if they train tomorrow and put their hand up after five minutes and come off, they won’t be playing.
“If they get through the session there’s a chance they’ll play, so we’ll have to see.
“We’ll have a light training session tomorrow and if they come through it, and after a one-on-one chat we decide if we’ll go with it, if that’s the case.
“In all honesty, I don’t know sitting here if they’re going to be available or not.”
Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Toulouse: Neves stars in comfortable home win
Paris Saint-Germain maintained their unbeaten start to the Ligue 1 season with a comfortable 3-0 win over Toulouse on Friday.
Following Monaco's 3-2 win over Brest earlier in the day, Luis Enrique's side responded emphatically to stay five points clear at the top of the table.
After a dominant start, PSG got themselves ahead in stunning fashion when Achraf Hakimi's cross was brilliantly driven first-time into the bottom corner by Joao Neves.
But Toulouse provided a threat after the break and should have drawn level in the 70th minute through Shavy Babicka, but he fired over with only Matvey Safonov to beat.
That mistake ultimately proved costly with the hosts doubling their advantage eight minutes from time when Beraldo took advantage of some poor defending to finish inside the box.
The triumph was sealed in the first minute of second-half stoppage time through substitute Vitinha, who danced into the box before finishing high into the corner from close range.
Luis Enrique's side will now turn their attentions to the Champions League, with a daunting trip to the Allianz Arena to face Bayern Munich awaiting on Tuesday.
Data Debrief: Party in Paris
PSG's dominance in Ligue 1 continued on Friday, with Luis Enrique's side now having lost just one of their last 41 matches in the top-flight (W30 D10).
Neves was a particular standout for the hosts, winning more duels (nine), registering the joint-most shots on target (two) and the joint-most final third entries (seven) during the game.
Despite the scoreline, PSG were perhaps fortunate to emerge victorious. Though Luis Enrique's side accumulated 17 shots to Toulouse's 11, it was the visitors who ended the contest with a higher expected goals (xG) total, managing 1.39 to the Parisiens' 1.35.
Bayern Munich 3-0 Augsburg: Hat-trick hero Kane smashes Bundesliga record
Harry Kane scored a hat-trick to become the quickest player to score 50 Bundesliga goals as Bayern Munich comfortably dispatched Augsburg 3-0 on Friday.
Kane opened the scoring in the 63rd with a penalty before netting a quickfire double in second-half stoppage time to smash the record previously held by Erling Haaland.
Despite controlling the early possession, Bayern were unable to make their dominance count, with Nediljko Labrovic rarely troubled in the opening 45 minutes.
The hosts maintained their dominance after the interval, with Leon Goretzka's looped header grazing the crossbar before Jamal Musiala went close soon after.
However, Bayern were awarded a penalty after a lengthy VAR review saw Mads Pedersen penalised for handling the ball, with Kane stepping up to score from 12 yards.
The England captain grabbed his second of the game in the third-minute of stoppage time following another VAR review which saw Keven Schlotterbeck sent off after tripping Kane inside the box.
Kane sent Labrovic the wrong way but was not to be denied a fourth treble of the season, brilliantly taking down Goretzka's searching ball before heading the ball home.
Data Debrief: HurriKane
Kane has now scored 50 Bundesliga goals in 43 matches. Before him, Haaland was the quickest player to reach 50 Bundesliga goals, having done so in 50 appearances in the competition for Borussia Dortmund.
He is also the quickest to reach that total for Bayern by some distance. Kane has reached that tally quicker than the likes of Gerd Muller (83 games), Mario Gomez (71 games), Roy Makaay (67 games) and Robert Lewandowski (64 games).
10 of Kane’s goals have come from penalties, while 32 of them have been with his right foot, nine with his left and nine with his head.
Messi 'will be our No.10 in 2026', hopes Inter Miami chief Mas
Inter Miami fully expect Lionel Messi to remain at the club beyond his current contract ahead of the 2026 MLS season.
Those were the words of Miami's club managing owner, Jorge Mas, who was speaking to the media following Gerardo Martino's resignation earlier on Friday.
Messi joined the MLS side in July 2023 on a two-and-a-half-year contract, leading the Herons to the Supporters' Shield and Leagues Cup during his time in the United States so far.
His current deal is due to expire at the end of next year, though Mas made clear his desire to see Messi remain with the Herons at Miami Freedom Park, the club's new stadium that will open in 2026.
"He’s under contract through 2025. Leo and I will sit, and we’ll discuss the future,” Mas said.
“As I’ve said before, and I will repeat it now: I fully expect that in the opening of our new stadium in 2026 in Miami and the opening of our 2026 season, hopefully after a trophy-laden 2025 season, that Lionel Messi will be our No. 10.”
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