Phillips makes ‘unrest’ claim after Sunderland fan announcement
Kevin Phillips claims Sunderland could be set for an uncomfortable 90 minutes against Lincoln with 10,000 fans set to attend.
The Black Cats legend, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, warned of unrest if the players don’t perform next weekend.
Last week, Sunderland announced they have sold their entire 10,000 allocation for the playoff clash.
It will be the first time Sunderland fans have been able to watch their side in the flesh for over 14 months.
Lee Johnson’s side face Lincoln in the League One playoff semi-finals with the first game taking place at the LNER Stadium on Wednesday.
Sunderland face the return leg on Saturday and Phillips claims the result of the first match will have a bearing on how the fans treat the players.
“It will have a slight bearing,” Phillips told Football Insider correspondent Dylan Childs.
“Is it going to be 10,000? It will have an effect, I don’t care what anyone says. Hopefully it’s a good effect.
“That will be the second leg of the tie so if Sunderland go into that game behind, the fans will be right behind them.
“If things don’t go to plan, there will soon be unrest and things can become uncomfortable.
“The players will be able to hear individual voices. It’s going to be tough. But it should encourage them to put in a performance.
“Some of those players have never played in front of a crowd at the Stadium of Light so it’s a different ball game for them.”
Sunderland are looking to make it out of League One at the third attempt.
The Black Cats will face either Oxford or Blackpool if they manage to make it to Wembley for the playoff final.
In other news, Sunderland backed to reignite pursuit of in-form striker after £2million transfer reveal.