Follow live coverage as Stoke City face Sunderland in the Championship today.
An increasingly competitive second tier in English football remains an intense and exciting competition, with the prize of a place in the Premier League on offer at the end of the season.
Relegation from the top flight last term means Luton, Burnley and Sheffield United are all back in the second tier this term and will be expected to push for play-off spots again at least, but so too will Norwich City, an improving Coventry and beaten play-off finalists Leeds United. At the other end of the table, Wayne Rooney is aiming to revive Plymouth’s fortunes after they narrowly avoided relegation last year, with Portsmouth and Derby the teams promoted from League One along with play-off final winners Oxford.
Follow live updates from today’s game in the live blog below.
Stoke City FC 0 - 0 Sunderland AFC
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:49
Foul by Milan Aleksic (Sunderland).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:48
Attempt blocked. Chris Mepham (Sunderland) right footed shot from very close range is blocked.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:48
Attempt blocked. Eliezer Mayenda (Sunderland) header from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Adil Aouchiche with a cross.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:47
Corner, Sunderland. Conceded by Ashley Phillips.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:47
Corner, Sunderland. Conceded by Viktor Johansson.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:47
Attempt saved. Trai Hume (Sunderland) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the top left corner. Assisted by Dan Neil.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:46
Attempt saved. Lewis Koumas (Stoke City) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Thomas Cannon with a through ball.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:45
Attempt saved. Adil Aouchiche (Sunderland) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Jobe Bellingham.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:43
Corner, Sunderland. Conceded by Lynden Gooch.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:39
Foul by Tatsuki Seko (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:37
Dan Neil (Sunderland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:36
Attempt saved. Wilson Isidor (Sunderland) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:35
Foul by Bae Jun-Ho (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:35
Corner, Sunderland. Conceded by Lynden Gooch.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:35
Attempt saved. Adil Aouchiche (Sunderland) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top right corner.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:33
Offside, Stoke City. Thomas Cannon is caught offside.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:33
Attempt missed. Junior Tchamadeu (Stoke City) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Tatsuki Seko.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:33
Attempt saved. Milan Aleksic (Sunderland) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Wilson Isidor.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:30
Andrew Moran (Stoke City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:29
Foul by Andrew Moran (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:26
Foul by Wouter Burger (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:25
Lewis Koumas (Stoke City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:23
Lynden Gooch (Stoke City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:23
Eliezer Mayenda (Sunderland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:22
Foul by Dennis Cirkin (Sunderland).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:22
Ashley Phillips (Stoke City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:20
Corner, Sunderland. Conceded by Ashley Phillips.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:20
Attempt blocked. Jobe Bellingham (Sunderland) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is blocked. Assisted by Adil Aouchiche.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:18
Foul by Adil Aouchiche (Sunderland).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:20
Tatsuki Seko (Stoke City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:18
Ashley Phillips (Stoke City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:18
Foul by Ashley Phillips (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:17
Foul by Junior Tchamadeu (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:17
Eliezer Mayenda (Sunderland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:16
Corner, Stoke City. Conceded by Trai Hume.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:16
Thomas Cannon (Stoke City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:15
Foul by Ashley Phillips (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:14
Attempt saved. Thomas Cannon (Stoke City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:10
Attempt missed. Thomas Cannon (Stoke City) left footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Andrew Moran.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:09
Foul by Milan Aleksic (Sunderland).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:05
Dennis Cirkin (Sunderland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:07
Foul by Tatsuki Seko (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:05
Corner, Sunderland. Conceded by Ashley Phillips.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:04
Foul by Andrew Moran (Stoke City).
Stoke City vs Sunderland
15:02
First Half begins.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
14:30
Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
Stoke City vs Sunderland
13:00
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