Plymouth vs Sunderland Prediction: Black Cats to claw the Pilgrims

Plymouth Argyle will hope to get their first win of the season as they entertain Sunderland in the EFL Championship on Saturday (15:00). The Pilgrims have two points from a possible 12 so far, and they will face a tough return to action against the league leaders.

Sunderland have won all their matches to date and are looking like they could be strong promotion contenders this year. Read on for my Plymouth vs Sunderland prediction, including match odds and team news.

Plymouth vs Sunderland Odds

*Please click on the link above to be taken to the main Plymouth vs Sunderland page on betfred.com (or app) for all the live betting prices on this match.

Plymouth are 3/1 to win their first league match of the season and shock the league leaders, giving them an implied probability of (25%). Sunderland are 8/11, or a 57.9% chance for the away win. The draw is available at 5/2 (28.6%).

Over 2.5 goals is marketed at 8/11 and both teams to score can be backed at 4/6.

Football Odds

Team News

Plymouth's Freddie Issaka remains suspended following the straight red card he picked up against Queens Park Rangers last month. Rooney will welcome back Adam Forshaw from suspension, though, and he could be in contention for a recall to the starting lineup.

For Sunderland, Ajibola Alese remains sidelined with an ankle injury. Jenson Seelt is also in the medical bay, having last made a competitive appearance back in March.

Sunderland -1 handicap @ 21/10

Sunderland are flying at the moment and have enjoyed an amazing start to the season, winning all four of their matches. They are laying down a marker in the race for promotion and only a handful would have perceived them as genuine candidates.

Regis Le Bris has had an instant impact on Wearside and he probably wouldn't have wanted the international break to come when it did, as he may think it could blunt his side's momentum.

Luckily for them their first game back is a trip to one of the worst-performing sides in the division, Plymouth. The Pilgrims are still waiting for their first win under Wayne Rooney, who is still trying to establish himself as a top coach in the English game. He is looking to rebuild his reputation after his 15-game stint at Birmingham City last season was an utter car crash.

There was hope that this job could be the perfect fit. No loftier ambitions other than keeping the club in the division, a pre-season and a transfer window. Two losses and two draws so far, but they don't appear to be getting any closer to that elusive win.

And I can't see that changing against the Black Cats, who are on fire right now. Sunderland's intense pressing, coupled with the flair from their attacking talents is what has helped them start the campaign with such authority.

They have only conceded one goal so far, in comparison to the hosts' seven, and Plymouth haven't really developed a goal threat yet. That is why I think it is worth backing Sunderland to win with a -1 handicap. They have shown already that they can blow teams away, (beating Sheffield Wednesday 4-0) and I think they could be in for another productive afternoon in the second tier on Saturday.

Over 2.5 Sunderland goals @ 5/2

Which leads me nicely on to my second selection. The Black Cats have scored 10 goals in four matches thus far, and there have been two occasions in which they have at scored at least three goals - the win over the Owls and most recently a 3-1 triumph at Portsmouth. They will be looking for another prolific performance on the south coast this weekend at Home Park, and given Argyle's defensive record, I believe they can profit.

To Plymouth's credit (somewhat), there has only been one league game so far in which they have conceded a high volume of goals, and that was a 4-0 home defeat to Sheffield Wednesday on the opening weekend of the season. It was then a week later that Sunderland blew the Yorkshire outfit away, firing four goals past them.

The visitors have a lot of momentum coming into this game and they have plenty of firepower, which should serve them well throughout the campaign. This will be Plymouth's toughest test so far and I think they will find it very difficult in trying to suppress the free-scoring league leaders.

Offers

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