Rotherham welcome Sunderland to the New York Stadium on Friday. The Millers are looking to build on their win over Middlesbrough, which was their first victory in 12 matches.

Rotherham United’s Friday clash with Sunderland is a real match-up of contrasting circumstances. The hosts prop up the table, their Boxing Day win over Middlesbrough serving as their first victory in 12 games. Meanwhile, Sunderland are duking it out in the promotion race up in sixth place. Have Rotherham awoken or will the Black Cats resume normal service for the struggling Millers?

Rotherham have endured a rotten time of it recently, dispensing with manager Matt Taylor in November. Leam Richardson stepped into the breach, with the Boro victory providing the sole win of his tenure so far. 

Sunderland have endured the unpopular sacking of Tony Mowbray, who had earned plaudits for his playing style and for guiding his side to the play-offs last term. Ex-Rangers manager Michael Beale has taken over, looking to rebound from his October Ibrox sacking. Sunderland have won one and lost one of his two games in charge thus far.

Team News:

Rotherham’s injury crisis rages on, with a procession of names longer than Santa’s naughty list still out for the Millers. Cameron Humphreys, Tyler Blackett and Lee Peltierall miss out with hamstring injuries. Meanwhile Grant Hall, Fred Onyedinma, Andre Green and Shane Ferguson all look set to miss out, having been unavailable for the win over Middlesbrough.

Bradley Dack was forced off at the halfway stage of Sunderland’s victory over Hull City. Potentially joining him on the sidelines could be Aji Alese, who is nursing a knock while Jay Matete carries a knee problem. Niall Huggins’ difficult medical history reared its head again against Coventry City, with the defender being stretchered off. The club have confirmed he has suffered “a significant injury”. Corry Evans will miss out due to his ACL complaint while Dennis Cirkin’s hamstring malady will prevent his involvement.

Match Odds:

Rotherham are betting underdogs, as expected for a team propping up the Championship table. The Millers are 9/2 to secure a home victory. Perhaps you feel like Richardson has brought that winning feeling to Rotherham after the Middlesbrough win?

11/4 for the draw might not be a bad shout as Sunderland acclimatise to Beale’s methods. The Black Cats are facing a side with nothing to lose at this point and their mettle might just be tested.

The likeliest outcome is that Sunderland bolster their play-off hopes and leave the New York Stadium three points richer. 8/15 is the price there, though perhaps it looks better in an accumulator than as a single.

Over 2.5 goals @ 10/1

A brave one here, based more on Rotherham’s form than Sunderland’s. The North East side have seen three scored in a game twice this month, with a 2-1 victory over West Brom and a 3-0 loss to Coventry City. Their other results read 1-1, 1-0, 1-0 and 1-1. But as we’ll see, the floodgates do have a way of opening when Rotherham are involved.

Unfortunately it is not in the way they would hope for. The Millers have conceded three to Leicester City and Plymouth Argyle this month. Sunderland certainly have the players to do it again against a team suffering with a spate of injuries.

Half-Time Result - Draw @ 13/10

Rotherham concede a lot of goals in the second half of games. Two of Plymouth’s three came in the second period while all of Leicester’s trio arrived after the break. West Brom beat them 2-0 with a pair of second-half strikes too. It is a problem Richardson has struggled to address, though the clean sheet against Boro will likely serve as the manager’s blueprint.

Rotherham are more than capable of staving off Sunderland early and going in at half-time on level terms. They can be broken down, with their 47 goals conceded standing as the league’s worst defensive record. But Sunderland may have to work hard and be patient to get there.

You can check out all of our Football Betting Tips on our Football page.