Gillingham boss Neil Harris looking forward to 'huge' Sunderland clash

Neil Harris is relishing the opportunity of taking his Gillingham side to the Stadium of Light where they face Sunderland on Saturday afternoon. In the build-up to the game, he called the Black Cats ‘a huge football club’ and is expecting a great atmosphere on Wearside.

The Gills are not yet clear of the possibility of relegation but given their five-point cushion and the horrendous form of the teams below, they should be safe. Meanwhile, Sunderland are competing at the other end of the table as they sit two points behind sixth-place Sheffield Wednesday.

Harris is hoping that the pressure on his side’s opponents to finish in the play-off places might work in Gillingham’s favour. “The Stadium of Light is a great place to play our football, probably in front of a crowd of around 30,000, a great atmosphere, huge football club that are under huge pressure to go up in the play-offs and get promoted this year,” he told KentOnline.

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“They have an array of talent, very good players, can play various systems under Alex Neil, who is a vastly experienced manager and we know it is a very tough ask but it is a great one for us, with the form we are in and the confidence and belief that we have in the group.”

Gillingham’s away form in recent weeks has been the driving force behind their push away from the relegation zone. They travel to the North-east on the back of three consecutive victories on the road and will be desperate to make it four.

Sunderland aren’t in bad form themselves though as they have not been beaten in their last six matches, of which they have won three. However, in their last game prior to the international break, they were frustrated in