View From: 'Stevie will be spurred on'

Liverpool return to Barclays Premier League action following their progression to the FA Cup fourth round on Monday evening by tackling Gus Poyet's Black Cats in a lunchtime kick-off today.

To learn more about the form of a side currently positioned 14th in the standings at the halfway stage of the campaign, we sought the views of Gray - who played more than 400 games on Wearside.

He reveals how finding the back of the net has proven a frustration for his former employers this season, offers his personal tribute to the Reds' captain and delivers a glowing assessment of ex-Mackem Jordan Henderson.

Tell us about Sunderland's recent form - they have only won one of their last 10...

They are obviously struggling at the moment; they are just trying to find a win from somewhere. They have drawn too many games this season and Gus has got to try to turn those draws into wins. But it's not going to be getting any easier coming up against a Liverpool side who are in form.

Why are they drawing so many games? Is it a lack of goals? 

Yes, basically, it's down to a lack of goals. Steven Fletcher is probably the talisman and the one you go to, but he needs the service. They are finding it difficult to give him that service. Behind Steven Fletcher, you've got Connor Wickham - who, by all accounts, is a centre-forward but Gus has been playing him out on the left hand side in a lot of games. Then you've got Jozy Altidore, who just can't buy a goal; he struggled in his spell at Hull and since he has come to Sunderland, he just can't find any goals from anywhere. I think it's certainly an area that Gus has got to have a look at when he goes into the transfer market this month.

How do you drag yourself out of these kinds of runs? Can games like these give you emphasis to produce a performance? 

It's just hard work, that's all you can put it down to. You go on the training ground to work on things and try to fathom out where things have gone wrong and how you can make more opportunities for your centre-forwards. Monday to Friday on the training ground - that's where it can work. But, ideally, what you want to happen is for it to come to the fore when you come to the matchday. That's what they'll be trying to do against Liverpool.

Will the crowd play a part at such a massive stadium? 

Most definitely, there's no question about that. That's what you have to do - when you're playing at home you have to make the 12th man. Sunderland fans and Liverpool fans have got a good rapport between each other, so the atmosphere in the stadium is going to be electric anyway.

What have you made of Liverpool so far this season? 

They have struggled. It was always going to be difficult to lose such a quality player in Luis Suarez. Brendan Rodgers has tried to bring in different players to fill in the squad. Markovic is starting to show signs of the quality that he's got, and other players as well. Obviously there's the disappointment of the news that Steven is going to be leaving the club at the end of the season but I think that's only going to spur him on. He's an absolute legend at the club. They are playing some great football, but the problem has just been finishing teams off.

Everyone has been paying their own tribute to Gerrard since the announcement last week - how would you sum him up as a player? 

He's one of the best, one of the best players to ever pull on a Liverpool shirt - right up there with Kenny Dalglish. I remember Stevie from his younger days; I played against him at the Stadium of Light. He played on the right hand side so I came up against him. He is still exactly the same player now, physical and his energy levels are absolutely fantastic. He is a credit to himself on and off the field. He's a total professional and one of the legends of our game.

What have you made of Jordan Henderson's progress with Liverpool? Could you have predicted that when he left Sunderland? 

It was a lot of money for Liverpool to spend on Jordan Henderson but he has done fantastically. He found it hard in his first season, but last year there's no question he was one of Liverpool's best players. You have to look at Luis Suarez, Steven and Daniel Sturridge for what they achieved, but Jordan was a big part of that. He's still trying to find that form from last season. If he's given the captain's armband, there's no better person to do it. He's a truly professional lad and a good kid - he has got Liverpool at heart, you can see the passion when he plays. He's a quality player and he's going to be there for many years to come.

And, finally, your prediction for the match?

I've got to stick my neck out, so I'm going to go for Sunderland to win 1-0.