Ipswich Town v Sunderland: Key stats and talking points

Ipswich are back in the Premier League and Gary O'Neil's side face a tough task against a Sunderland side that excelled last season in qualifying for Europe. BBC Sport takes a look at some of the key themes going into their opening-weekend encounter. A promoted club spending big on a raft of ambitious signings from clubs around Europe. Sound familiar? Well, Ipswich have followed Sunderland's playbook from last season by spending big in the hope of giving themselves a better chance of survival than they had on their Premier League return two years ago. Replicating the Black Cats' stunning achievement of qualifying for Europe will be a stretch of course, but the Tractor Boys hope a switch in recruitment policy will pay dividends. During Kieran McKenna's four-and-a-half-year reign in charge at Portman Road a remarkable 32 of the 39 signings they made were either born or raised in Britain or Ireland, with just two joining directly from European clubs. However, this off season players have arrived who hail from the likes of Brazil, Japan and Ghana. The summer hasn't all been plain sailing, though, given McKenna's bombshell departure from the club just a month after leading them to a third promotion in four seasons. His replacement Gary O'Neil knows the Premier League well and also impressed at Strasbourg last season, but he has a point to prove having been wounded by the end of his tenure at Wolves. He won just two of his last 19 top-flight matches at Molineux and his reign was actually brought to an end by a fractious defeat to the Tractor Boys. That win for Ipswich was one of only four they managed as their first top-flight season for 22 years ended in an immediate return to the Championship. Their form at Portman Road was particularly wretched in the second half of the season as they lost their last nine home league matches in a row to bow out with a whimper. [BBC] Tipped as relegation candidates at the start of last season, Sunderland defied the odds on their Premier League comeback to record their highest finish since 2000 with seventh place enough to secure European football for the first time in 53 years. Having spent over £150m last summer they have gone the opposite way this time round with veteran Belgian defender Thomas Meunier their only major acquisition so far on a free transfer. Arguably their most important piece of business was keeping hold of their key players and staving off a move from Chelsea for inspirational captain Granit Xhaka, who proved to be one of the signings of last season. The strength of their recent recruitment was shown by their players doing so well at the World Cup. Only players from Real Madrid, PSG and Arsenal scored more goals in the USA, Canada and Mexico than their eight. Balancing the rigours of the Europa League with the bread and butter of the Premier League will be a real challenge for Le Bris, but it is one he and his players are relishing. [BBC]