ON THE ROAD: At what point did Sunderland go from being a big club that accidentally found themselves in League One, to becoming a genuine lower league outfit?

Sunderland supporters have reacted with concern after it was revealed owner Stewart Donald has secured a £9million loan from American investors against the club's stadium and training ground.

TOM FARMERY: For many it is a time to celebrate, rejoice and enjoy all that Christmas brings. The same can be said in the Premier League unless, of course, if you are bottom of the table.

Some caretakers managers have proved successful and gained the job permanently. Others have proved disastrous. Sportsmail take a look at some of the best and some of the worst.

The 28-year-old striker underwent his medical at the Serie A side earlier this week before the move confirmed by AC Milan on Tuesday afternoon.

CHRIS SUTTON - FA CUP VERDICT: People from the North East live and breathe football. Walk around Newcastle city centre on any given day, and you'll see black and white stripes aplenty.

Three of the most memorable football matches of my youth were all very different. All are linked by one thing. On each occasion, a ticket was purchased on the day of the game.

EXCLUSIVE: Stewart Donald was targeted by Sunderland supporters as he left Fratton Park with his young son following Saturday's 2-0 defeat, before a group of Pompey fans came to his aid.

Sheffield United's latest win leaves them just two points off a Champions League spot, but how do they compare to other Premier League sides to have taken the top flight by storm following promotion.

With the country heading into lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic, we could all soon find ourselves with plenty of time on our hands. So we came up with a few good ways to keep entertained.

In his teen years, a professional deal at Sunderland was in the balance, but it was Henderson's well-known dedication and attitude which swung the decision in his favour.

Henderson has lifted the Champions League and is on the verge of winning the Premier League and Bruce insists he saw Henderson's devoted attitude and sense of authority straight away.

SPECIAL REPORT: Sportsmail previously revealed that majority shareholder Stewart Donald used Sunderland's parachute payments to finance the majority of the £37m purchase of club.

After a four-hour match against Roger Federer, Andy Murray has a day less to prepare for the final than Novak Djokovic. But Andy is a very fit guy, and I’m not sure it makes that much difference.

There is an 800lb elephant in the room for this Australian Open semi-final in the shape of Dani Vallverdu, Andy Murray's former assistant, but my advice would be: don't make it personal.

Sir Bradley Wiggins, from London, has revealed he won't be pushing his 'very talented' son into becoming a professional cyclist - claiming that doing so to bask in the reflected glory would be 'cruel'.

CHIEF SPORTS WRITER: There are certain people whose position of trust is so great that lying in a professional capacity is unacceptable. And Freeman was acting in a professional capacity.

MIKE KEEGAN: Questions over the 'integrity and credibility' of former Team Sky head coach Shane Sutton will be used as part of Dr Richard Freeman's defence over the delivery of banned testosterone.

Sir Bradley Wiggins has launched a bizarre foul-mouthed tirade at Mickey Mouse during a recent trip to Disneyland Paris. In the clip, the Olympic legend can be seen shouting obscenities at the resort.

Cable channel Fox, has adapted HG Wells' classic sci-fi novel The War Of The Worlds, months after a BBC1 series. Nicole Lampert, reveals how the latest adaptation set in Britain and France differs.

Joe Biden tossed out red meat to Democratic voters in South Carolina Monday night, but, again, pumped the brakes on attacking Bernie Sanders head-on.

The Court of Appeal ruled that the £14 billion expansion of Heathrow airport was illegal - because the Government failed to take into account its legal duty to curb climate change.

Consumer experts at Which? found the latest generation of cars being sold to UK consumers emit more CO2, which is associated with climate change.

Experts from the University of Reading found that cutting pollution in areas with heavy industry would lead to short term temperature spikes and heavier rainfall.

Orange Is The New Black star Yael Stone recently returned to Australia over concerns about the carbon footprint she was creating by travelling to the US to work. 

Climate neutrality by 2050 is unlikely for the UK without drastic technological and societal changes including limiting aviation and halving meat production, a report has found.

Experts analysed the carbon footprints of 212 plant-based margarines and spreads sold across European and North America in comparison to 21 dairy butter products.

Two Russian pranksters Alexei Stolyarov and Vladimir Kuznetsov 'tricked' Prince Harry into believing they were climate change activist Greta Thunberg and her father Svante.

London's excessive water consumption is leaving the south east particularly at risk of water shortages in the next 20 years. Drier weather due to climate change could bring a 600mn litre reduction in rainfall.

A group scientists in the Arctic are stranded on a research ship after worldwide shutdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic have prevented them from being replaced by a new team.

This change will make the nightingale's long migrations to Africa more arduous and threaten its very survival, scientists have warned.

Stanford University, California experts believe that the 'Late Ordovician' mass extinction 450 million years ago was due to widespread 'anoxia', or oxygen depletion, over a three million year period.

Parts of the US and Mexico have been plagued by a severe drought since 2000, making it the worse one in the past 1,200 years and experts warn it could progress as a megadrought.

Butterfly Conservation has been taking comprehensive surveys of Britain's butterfly and moth populations for the last 50 years.

Nigel Colborn shares his advice for adding a touch of Mediterranean to your garden. The British gardening expert says Mediterranean plants are almost entirely self-maintaining.

Vice-chancellor Louise Richardson said Oxford had to take up the mantle of 'reducing carbon emissions and tackling climate change before it is too late.'

Climate change will make life even harder for agriculture workers in the coming decades, with nearly double the number of days when it will be too hot to safely work outdoors.

Authorities searched the Seeking Arrangement dating site for University of Utah student Mackenzie Lueck and murder suspect Ayoola Ajayi after her death, court documents filed on Friday show.

Hector Fonseca, 17, from Humble, Texas, has been charged with third-degree making terroristic threats, a felony, for allegedly posting messages on Snapchat about blowing up plane.

Reese Witherspoon, 43, gave some renowned parenting advice on how to communicate with kids. The actress took to her Instagram to share she has resorted to chatting with her kids on Snapchat.

Wayne Hoch, 35, was driven to mental collapse after being taunted over his South African nationality by colleagues at UK firm Thor Atkinson Steel Fabrications Ltd.

This is the unbelievable moment a London youth slashes the tires of a taxi he was riding in after the driver refused to take him any further. The pair argue before the youth slashes his car's tyres.

Channing Smith, 16, killed himself on Sunday night at his home in Tennessee after sexually explicit messages outing him as gay were shared by people known to him on social media.

Members of Mayflower FC can be heard singing 'there was one naked n***** on the bus,' while on their way to a team social at Oceana nightclub in Southampton city centre.

The 16-year-old has just served a two-week domestic suspension, which was handed to him by the Football Association after he was found to have mocked England captain Harry Kane on Snapchat.

The brawl was filmed in Ai to Ai, a beauty salon in Aberdeen market in Scotland. Two women, one in black and one in pink, start arguing then fighting in the salon.

Shocking footage posted on Snapchat showed the youths looting a JD Sports store in Tottenham. Dozens of youths piled into the shop before grabbing items from shelves.

Showing a large virtual spider crawling in circles around the face, Snapchat's new filter has delighted and horrified users in equal measure.

William Russell, from Adelaide has been jailed for two-and-a-half-years after he groomed teenage boys to send him nude photos.

The 37-year-old beauty, who has starred on the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful and worked with Gwyneth Paltrow on Mortdecai, shared the news on Monday after flashing her diamond.