Confident Gills striker fires warning message to Sunderland

Gillingham striker Vadaine Oliver is confident his side have got what takes to get a result against Sunderland this afternoon.

Oliver believes his side have got the players within their squad to cause Sunderland problems when the two sides meet at the Priestfield Stadium this weekend.

The Black Cats return to League One action today after a double-header in the Papa

John’s Trophy following last weekend's postponed league fixture with Oxford United.

Lee Johnson’s side secured their passage into the knock-out stages of the Papa John’s Trophy with their midweek win over Manchester United’s U21s, but the Sunderland head coach will be hoping they can bounce back from a heavy defeat on the south coast last time out in the league after going down 4-0 at Portsmouth.

It was just the Black Cats second defeat of the season, and a result which knocked them off the top of the League One table with the Wearsiders slipping down to fourth after last weekend’s inactivity.

And they head to face a Gillingham side who they have struggled against in recent meetings since dropping down to the third tier in 2018.

Johnson’s side have won just one of the last six encounters with the Gills and Oliver is relishing the prospect of extending Sunderland’s difficult run against his side.

“We know it will be tough,” he said.

“They are a tough opposition and a good side, but so are we. We have got the right players to cause Sunderland a problem.

“They have a team that have gelled well this year so we will have to be on our game to keep them quiet.

“It’s games like this that you look forward to after the loss at the weekend. We are ready for this one, and hopefully this is the game that gives us that boost.

“It’s been a tough start to the season but we have a good squad here,” the striker added.

"Once we get that good result, you will see us go on a run. We need to come together and give it everything.”

Oliver is a key figure at the Priestfield for Steve Evans’ side after a blistering end to last season saw the 29-yearold score 12 goals in the final 15 games of the campaign.

But while the Englishman hasn't quite carried that rich vein of form into this season, the striker has still notched five times in 14 games across all competitions.