With the Chelsea revenge mission out of the way, we can now focus on Stoke in tomorrow’s early match up at the Britannia Stadium. I will not over-analyse what happened at the SSOL on Tuesday; it was a terrific game for neutral observers, and the Black Cats played a full part in an excellent spectacle against the expensively-assembled visiting team, who have rediscovered the confidence which deserted them after the 0-3 setback at the Bridge. Plus points: Goal machine Phil Bardsley, Sessegnon's debut and Kieran Richardson chipping in with a goal again. The negatives: an uncharacteristic hesitancy in defence, with 4 goals conceded at home for the first time since Man. Utd. on Boxing Day 2007, and a crowd of “just” 37,855. The take home message is that we need Mensah and Turner available for selection and Cattermole doing what he does best, protecting the back line, as soon as humanly possible – the latter two starred at Stamford Bridge in October. News of the young skipper’s continued absence for another month is a blow.

What is going on across the Tyne? We know that Andy Carroll the footballer has a physical presence and has made an impact this season with 10 goals. But as Fox Soccer pundits said last night, £35M is a lot of money for potential! I suppose one could say that yesterday was all driven by a domino effect known as the Champions League. Chelsea decided that they need Torres to have any chance of winning the trophy this year, and that set off a series of related events, ending up with Newc**tle apparently pushing Carroll out of the door. Soccernet.com and other media reports suggest that he did not want to leave Newcastle. The striker told the Evening Chronicle: I didn't want to leave. Make sure the fans know I didn't want to leave. But the next moment he suddenly became the 8th most expensive striker in history!

The Black Cats showed their determination to succeed at very the top of English football by making two excellent midfield signings with Inter Milan midfielder Sulley Muntari joining on loan until the summer, and Benin playmaker Stephane Sessegnon arriving from PSG for a reported fee of € 7M, as reported on Soccernet.com. Muntari was a regular for Milan in their amazing treble season under The Special One last year, and will join Ghanain compatriots John Mensah and Asamoah Gyan at the Stadium of Light. The fans will be delighted that such acknowledged international talent has been attracted to the Stadium of Light, and I believe that our league position and the stability at the club have contributed to the increasing credibility of Sunderland as a force to compete at the very top of English football. Ambition is one thing, but having the wherewithal to execute a strategic plan and have the resources to propel the club into European competition is something else.

OK, this high-profile return fixture with Chelsea is a really huge game and Steve Bruce, as quoted on SAFC.com, wants the fans to show up in great numbers at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday. But when you are in the top 6 of the best league in the world, every game is huge. And as we have come to understand as the season has progressed, there are no easy games in the Premiership this year. The bar has been raised significantly as each team made really good preparations for this campaign, and now, with all due respect to Wigan, clubs near the bottom have made some excellent signings to avoid the ultimate horror of relegation. Currently there is a www.bottom3 with Wigan, Wolves and West Ham featuring, but the 18th club is just 10 points behind Liverpool in 7th spot, but that will surely change.

Sunderland provided the ideal riposte to what was a traumatic week, with a great performance in an end-to-end game at Bloomfield Road. The Black Cats were looking to avenge the only defeat at the SSOL this season, that really weird game dominated by Sunderland, but won 2-0 by the Seasiders thanks to a brace by DJ Campbell; oh, the fascinations of football! The way things ended up on Saturday, an excellent away win by the Lads meant a consolidation of our top 6 position, where we lie 7 points ahead of Newc**tle in 7th spot. The world’s top league is such an unusual Premiership this season, with so many teams beating each other, that only the top 6 have won more games than they have lost, and Sunderland are comfortably in that category with 9 wins and 5 defeats so far. Some of the middling sides have improved, coinciding with slumps of form by traditional top 8 regulars Liverpool, Everton and Aston Villa, and no team has been left behind at the bottom of the league..

Darren who? Oh, you mean our ex-striker...

I can't believe how well it's gone. If the offer of an extension came up I'd be more than happy to sign it. It's all about the football up here. It's all passion, passion, passion, but the supporters' intensity has never scared me. They are looking at me to get the goals and that is a massive confidence booster. Darren Bent, December 2010.

So money was not a factor in this move, says Darren Bent. Villa is a massive club, he asserts. With Stewart Downing, Ashley Young, there’s a fantastic supply line. It’s just up to me to work on my finishing and try to put the chances away…

One day we might find out the truth behind all this. But for now Sunderland just have to collect the money, and move on. £24M is a lot for player just 3 years off his 30th birthday, and this has been a shock for the fans. It all happened so quickly. Inevitably, we feel let down by someone who scored so many goals for us, but also a person whose career we got back on track.

The much anticipated Tyne Wear Derby provided good entertainment in what was a tense battle. Both teams were missing key players, and the home fans were happy to see Andy Carroll absent from the visitors’ line up, given his performace at St. James' in the Oct. 31 clash. Sunderland were without Welbeck and their influential skipper Lee Cattermole. Overall, the home team were sharper in the first half, coming forward well, with Newcastle threatening on the break.

The media is full of reports that Darren Bent has handed in a written transfer request, and Steve Bruce has confirmed to ESPNsoccernet that the England striker is talking to Aston Villa. Like many Sunderland fans, I must admit I am stunned, but on reflection this could also be very good business for the Black Cats, if they can secure a replacement during this transfer window. Nobody wants to see a good, even great goalscorer leave the club, but Darren Bent has not had a great season by his standards – he has been struggling for form. He has been missing "easy" chances and did not trouble Steve Harper much on Sunday; he was playing as if he was carrying a burden, and now this news has come out today.

One thing that has bugged me a bit over the last couple of months to be honest, is how often Steve Bruce has mentioned the Halloween disaster at St. James’ during TV interviews. We all want to exorcise the ghost of that game which should not still be haunting us after what has been an excellent recovery and turnaround to hit 6th spot in the Premiership, despite the catalogue of injuries suffered by the Lads. So Steve, my advice is forget about that game and its post-traumatic shock, and get on with the real business of overhauling Chelsea, and looking at realising the Black Cat’s somewhat understated ambition of Europa League football next season.

So yes, I was there at Roker Park in January 1973 when Sunderland met Notts County in the FA Cup third round, and although they went on to win the competition in legendary fashion, they did not have it all their own way even then. Steve Death played a blinder in the County goal, and the game ended level at 1-1, with Sunderland winning the replay at Meadow Lane 3-1. How we would have liked that outcome looking back on Saturday’s repeat game!