Sunderland

A winter slump cost Lee Johnson his job but they go into Friday night's League One play-off in buoyant mood after revival under Alex Neil.

Sources have stressed that his main aim was to make “Sunderland harder to beat” and there is pragmatism in his work. Whatever disappointment there was over the Keane saga, the appointment of former Norwich City and Preston manager Alex Neil has been a success. There was even talk that he would be forced to have a second interview and would need to make a presentation detailing his plans for the squad and style of play. That meant the combined majority of the old Madrox group, who had supposedly relinquished control, was still 59 per cent, even though Dreyfus was responsible for the day-to-day running of the business and direction of the club. When Dreyfus invested in the club in February 2021, it was stated that he had control, even though members of the old regime were retaining a small stake. When Johnson was sacked, the prospect of former manager and icon, Roy Keane, returning to the Stadium of Light sent a wave of excitement crashing across the region.

Roy Keane was among the names strongly tipped to replace Lee Johnson in the Sunderland dugout earlier this year and there are fresh reports detailing how ...

To hit two points-per-game over 15 matches and to hit 84 points, that speaks volumes of what the players have done. "But as ever, football management is a never-ending mountain climb isn't it? An inside source has told Telegraph Sport the “email was short and blunt”.”

Ross Stewart scored shortly before half-time in the League One playoff semi-final first leg to give his side a 1-0 aggregate lead over Sheffield Wednesday.

It left the striker clean through accelerating towards goal and although Bailey-Farrell saved his initial shot, Stewart made no mistake in steering the rebound home from a tight angle. Moore replaced the near anonymous Saido Berahino with Josh Windass in attack but, still, Sunderland dominated. It started to turn elements of the crowd slightly impatient before wholesale nervousness briefly intruded as Wednesday’s Liam Palmer crossed in Lee Gregory’s direction. Two hours before kick-off the amount of traffic slowing to a crawl on the stadium’s main approach roads felt reminiscent of the days when Sunderland were a Premier League club. In 16 games Neil succeeded the sacked Lee Johnson Sunderland have only lost once yet Wednesday initially, deceptively, looked more composed. Significantly Anthony Patterson, the home goalkeeper, was not required to make a single serious save.

SUNDERLAND have planted one foot in the League One Play-Off final courtesy of Ross Stewart's first half strike.The Black Cats flexed their muscles wit.

77. That is such a good chance! It was great to give them something to get excited about." It's going to be big." "I was just chasing it down... The ball is whipped in from the left side and it is misjudged by the Sunderland keeper, it is really fortunate to fall to a Sunderland defender and subsequently cleared. "It was avoidable... 69. It is a good effort from Roberts from the right hand side, but it is just wide of the far post. The players really thrived off it... On the game and the win: it's part of the job and I was able to get in there and nick it off the defender and run in and put it away so it was good to get the goal just before half time." "I thought the game lived up to what we though it was going to do, two teams in form, they have gone head to head and credit to Sunderland tonight, they played very well." "I think the pleasing thing tonight was I didn't think we were that good in possession, I didn't think we used it as well as what we can do.