Chops in Light show
MICHAEL CHOPRA is looking forward to making his first appearance at the Stadium of Light in a Sunderland shirt this weekend.
Former Newcastle man Chopra, who joined Sunderland for £5m from Cardiff City last month, is hoping for one last chance to impress boss Roy Keane before the Premiership kicks off next weekend, with the Black Cats preparing to take on Italian giants Juventus tomorrow in their final pre-season friendly.
Chopra scored the first goal of his Sunderland career in Wednesday’s 4-0 win over Galway United in the last match of the club’s tour of Ireland.
The 23-year-old hit 22 goals in the Championship for Cardiff last season, and he is confident that he will get goals for Sunderland in the top flight.
He said: “It will mean a lot to me to get the season under way and start playing again.
“When the season finished at Cardiff, I had scored 22 goals and I was desperate to get back in the Premiership.
“Thankfully, the opportunity to join Sunderland came along and I jumped at the chance and now I can’t wait for the season to start because I’m confident I can get goals in the Premiership.
“The Juventus game is the last chance for players to stake a claim for a place in the side for the first match against Spurs and hopefully I will be involved tomorrow.”
Chopra has played – and scored – at the Stadium of Light for both Newcastle and Cardiff, but the former England Under-21 international insists that, now he is a Sunderland player, he will be fully committed to the cause.
He said: “I know as a former Newcastle player I will have to win over the Sunderland fans, but I can assure them that I will give 110% every game.
“I’ll wear my heart on my sleeve and do everything I can for the club.
“Because it’s not very often a man like Roy Keane and a football club like Sunderland comes in for you.
“You can’t really turn down a proposition like that.
“It is a great honour to find that someone like Roy, with all he has achieved in the game and the great players he has played with, rates you highly enough to sign you.”
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