Phil Parkinson has urged his players to get off to a perfect start when they face Bristol Rovers in their Sky Bet League One opener tomorrow.
The Black Cats face their third game in seven days when the Pirates visit the Stadium of Light on Saturday after a cup double earlier this week.
And after the 8-1 rout over Aston Villa Under-21s on Tuesday, Parkinson revealed he has selection dilemmas ahead of tomorrow’s game.
“It’s good to have selection dilemmas going into the weekend, we were pleased our strikers got off the mark on Tuesday and the midfielders chipping in was great for us,” he said.
“We’re off and running with the two cup games already and we’re really looking forward to it, hopefully we can put in a good performance which will result in three points.
“With the nature of the season, the stronger the squad, the better chance you have.
“There will be teams that get off to a good start, but when injuries and suspensions hit it’s tough to maintain that.
“We have to be the team which gets off to a good start, but then also has the ability to sustain it.”
As for team news, Elliot Embleton is the only player unavailable after a thigh injury sustained in pre-season, although he is now back in full training.
The manager also provided an update on Danny Graham and Arbenit Xhemajli after the pair signed deals on Wearside last week.
He continued: “They are still working their way towards match fitness, it’s now just a case of getting them right up to speed.
“Arbenit played the full 90 minutes the other night against Aston Villa so we will see how he is tomorrow, and we will see how Danny is as well.”