All football fans have waited since the ending of last season for this day, the fixture release date. We kick off the campaign at home, and a winnable game against Fulham. Then our first away game comes at St Mary’s against Southampton. But the all important derby matches are what we all look for. We face the Mags at home on the 26th October and we travel to SJP to play them on February 1st. Our Boxing Day fixture this year is away to our bogey team over the years, Everton. Then our New Years Day fixture is at home to Villa. For a full fixture list click here

The toughest run of the season at home is definitely after the Fulham game, our home fixtures from then till December are as follows; Arsenal, Liverpool, Man United, Newcastle, Man City, Chelsea and Tottenham, yikes. However our final game of the season is again a winnable one, at home to Swansea, but if we need a result, our last away game is at the champions United the week before, hopefully we will be out of the mire by then this time round.

This next news story is somewhat self-serving, but it is front page news anyway so we shall report it! Ellis Short has embraced by SAFC fans by wearing a badge displaying FTM. Martyn McFadden, the editor of ALS of whom Short bought the badges from said: “It’s meant in a jovial way. Most clubs have a jibe aimed at the rivals and Newcastle have SMB (Sad Mackem B******s) which they use against us. It isn’t meant to be taken literally and people who wear it don’t mean they want to fight Newcastle. It’s used as a way of saying Newcastle’s irrelevant. I think it’s cool that Ellis Short is embracing Sunderland fan culture. I think most people in the city know what it means, but whenever children come into the shop and ask, we say it means ‘Follow the Mackems’.”

Meanwhile, the club today have been linked with Udinese’s striker Matej Vydra, who scored 22 goals while on loan at Watford last season. His agent, Ondrej Chovanec says the idea of working under Paolo Di Canio is interesting for his client. “It is correct that Sunderland are interested, but they are interested in a loan at the moment. They don’t want to spend that money at the moment. The final decision is with Udinese Calcio and the owner Giampaolo Pozzo and there are a lot of clubs interested in this player. Matej is a quality player and a top player for them, so they will be looking for the best deal available. He can play in a top level and I think that is what he will be doing next season. I think he builds a new team and he wants to get players who want to work hard and who are quick. He plays interesting football and he wants a squad that is capable of challenging for him next season. So it is an interesting club – but then Sunderland is always an interesting club in England. To work with Paolo Di Canio would be a good thing. I think he will probably end up coaching with one of the very top teams in England.” There is an obvious link between Vydra and Valentino Angeloni, former Udinese scout, now at SAFC.

Elsewhere, PDC can’t wait for the return to full fitness of Steven Fletcher, who was out from the end of March. "It was frustrating not to be able to call on him when I took over and it will boost us to have him back."

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Paolo Di Canio is already looking for a replacement for the outgoing Simon Mignolet, and has his sights set on Jeroen Zoet of PSV. The Dutch U21 International is out of favour at Eindhoven and has spent the last 2 seasons on loan to RKC Waalwijk, also in the Eredivisie. As he is out of the picture at PSV, the 22-year-old could be available on a cut-price deal of about £1 million, which considering Mig is going for about £9 million, it leaves £8 million to improve outfield.

Another player who looks to be on his way out of the SOL is David Vaughan. Crystal Palace seems to be the likely destination for the Welshman and we are looking for about a £1 million for a player signed on a Bosman during the Bruce era. This transfer could be pushed through to free up space for the possible signings such as Alfred Duncan of Inter. Vaughan was a favourite of Palace boss Ian Holloway when the pair were together in Blackpool’s only Premier League campaign in 2010-11.

Meanwhile, we have broadened our horizons even further this week with the announcement of our partnership with global energy giants Symbion Power to build new academies in the capital of Tanzania Dar es Saleem. This included a visit from the Tanzanian President Dk. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete. Chief Executive Margaret Byrne said; “It’s a momentous day for the club and the city. To have His Excellency visit us while he is here to talk to world leaders attending the G8 summit is a really big commitment from him and his ministers. It is wonderful for us. The first stage involves us working with Symbion Power to build a community-type academy, allowing many children to come and enjoy playing the game. They will be able to play under floodlights and realise their dream of playing on football pitches. The second stage involves us working together and Symbion and possibly other conglomerates to build an elite academy. We will assist with the various models we use here at the Academy of Light and also with the knowledge we’ve gained from the EPPP (Elite Player Performance Plan) project too. This is a very proud moment for everyone; to be able to lift all of our knowledge and bring it over to Dar Es Salaam is very special.”

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Hello and welcome to ALS. Apparently a £9 million figure has been agreed between us and Liverpool for the signature of Simon Mignolet. Without his contribution this season many would argue we could be playing in the Championship in the coming season, and club legend Jimmy Montgomery says Mignolet deserves SAFC's thanks. "I don't want Simon to go, I think he's a tremendous talent, who is only going to get better, and I'd love to see him playing for Sunderland for many years to come. But if he does go, I hope Sunderland fans will say good luck to the lad because I don't think anyone could have done more to keep Sunderland up last season than he did. Supporters voted him Player of the Season by a distance, and I'd agree with them. Goalkeepers can't get you three points – not unless they score a penalty or go up for a late corner I suppose – but what they can do is earn you a point by keeping a clean sheet. And few keepers kept more clean sheets in the Premier League last season than Simon. It's a team game of course, but there's many a game Sunderland would have lost had he not made one or two truly outstanding saves. In my view he saved us plenty of points over the course of the season, and that was probably the main reason we stayed up. If he does go, then he leaves a legacy of Sunderland still being in the Premier League, and for that, he deserves our gratitude."

Another player who is seemingly on his way out of the club is villain Phil Bardsley. Hull, under ex-boss Steve Bruce, are looking to rescue him from his nightmare stint under PDC at the club. He could leave on the cheap as Di Canio is looking to offload a host of first team players to make way for new signings.

Former £9 million pound man Craig Gordon is desperate to get back playing football again after his contract at SAFC expired last summer. "Coaching can wait – I'm only 30, it's not as if I need to be diving into it now. I may look to go into a club sometime next season, but only if I feel it's going to be of benefit, and only when I'm ready. At some point, the sharpness and the quickness of movement will have to come into it – you can't do that stuff by yourself so I'll have to commit to that if I want to get back to any kind of level. That won't happen overnight, it will take weeks, maybe months – but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. I've had calls to see if I'm available for next season, but until I know what state I'm in I don't want to go and let anybody down, sign as one of their keepers then not be able to play for a whole season. That's something that wouldn't weigh very well on my conscience. I'd rather wait and make sure I could contribute. I don't want to let myself down by going back too early, and going back just to earn some money is something that doesn't interest me at all.

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It's no secret which story is dominating the news this weekend, as it seems that the wheels are turning ever faster on this Simon Mignolet to Liverpool deal. Mignolet is a rare breed, he's a player that absolutely does not divide opinions. His class is there to see, and ultimately that's what we were all afraid of, I just wish we had the financial security to shun all offers for him and pay him stupid money to keep being fantastic in goal for us, as opposed to a Premier League rival, but that's football I'm afraid.

Strangely, a new transfer target has emerged in the form of out of favour Spurs midfielder Scott Parker. This time last year the world was raving over Parker, but after a terrible season for the london club, he has all but dropped off the face of the earth, especially under AVB's regime. There are huge question marks over Parker's fitness and longevity, but come on, we wouldn't be sunderland if we didn't sign a player with long term fitness issues! Parker is also an ex mag, but considering that they have been highly linked with Darren Bent in recent weeks, I don't think it's considered a faux pas anymore to feed off each others' sloppy seconds.

Another name receiving stronger links this morning is Alfred Duncan. Ghanaian midfielder Duncan was on loan at Serie B outfit Livorno in the season passed, and played a massive part in their promotion, but with parent club Inter Milan seemingly wishing to free up funds to make a move for Antonio Nocerino, it appears that Duncan will be the player they will let go. Not to say that he isn't a talent, the 20 year old is full of pace, can beat players and has an eye for a pass, a departure from our centre-midfield currently where the only eye catcher last season was Alfred N'Diaye, and he only seemed to find his feet after PDC took over.

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It seems that our worst fears could soon become a reality as Liverpool move ever closer to agreeing a fee for Simon Mignolet. Our Belgian brick wall is valued at £10m and it looks as though Liverpool would be willing to pay it given how much progress our player of the season has made in the last year and a half. A lot of us accepted that big clubs would be sniffing round Mignolet this summer, with Arsenal also making enquiries and a Barcelona scout reportedly spotted at a few of our away games in London. £10m is a decent price, and would allow us to invest in other delapidated areas of the squad, but we have lost our prized asset far too often in recent years, and this will not do any good for our reputation as a selling club. Mig's agent had this to say: "There is a contract so we have to respect that, but I don't think at this moment we would be prepared to sign a new contract. There is another two years on his contract, if they want us to stick to that, we will stick to that and perhaps leave after two years if there is an interest in Simon."

Meanwhile, in less depressing news, Republic of Ireland manager Giovani Trapattoni has backed Paolo Di Canio to become a successful manager. His comments come as a surprise considering that Di Canio once pushed his ex manager to the ground after an angry confrontation in the dressing room, something which Trapattoni has since forgiven it seems. Trap said: "He was a fantastic, creative player. He was a little bit strange, as I discovered when I was his manager. However, he can be a good manager because he will have learned how to deal with players. When he went to England to play it gave him more experience. He matured there and he grew. It was a different situation for him and he changed there, for sure. He was abrasive and confrontational as a player but that is his character. He can be a good manager, I am sure."

Indeed, our abrasive and confrontational manager has already dug his claws into players this summer, and urges that they must return to pre-season with good fitness levels, or they will face his wrath: "Obviously the players have a programme to follow so that they are ready when pre-season begins. When we start, we will start not that heavy, but there will still be a great deal to do and they have to be ready. It's normal in the Premier League, that players get punishment for breaking rules set down by the club. Everyone who comes back with more than 2kg over what their weight should be, we're going to fine them. We test them before they go so everyone knows how they finished the season. This is important because when they come back they're going to work three times a day, so it would be crazy to have put too much weight on in a short space of time. How can it be possible to come back with 7kg extra?

"They have one month off and then one month to work at a high intensity level and if they do not do that right, then in September, they'll still be heavy. You can't work if you've put 7kg on your shoulders. When I played, I came back with a player who was 10 or 11kg over and he didn't play all season because he had injury problems. I can imagine 2kg, because you can run, swim and play tennis as well as having a bit of food or drink – so you can keep a handle on the situation. You can accept 2kg because after a few days back sweating in five-a-sides that will soon go. But 5 or 6kg? That is not acceptable. We have to be serious about what we want to do."

Despite all the added pressure, Adam Johnson is looking forward to the revolution at Sunderland. His first season with us wasn't his most memorable as a player, but he believes that even in the last few games of the season we started to show signs of improvement: "Next season I think there's going to be a lot of change so who knows how well we can do? It's going to be an interesting summer. I think obviously we had a few out of contract, a few of the loan players have gone back. That was needed. Look at it on the final day – a couple of injuries and we're down to the bare bones. That speaks for itself – there's going to be a lot of change and hopefully it's for the good of the team. We've just got to start looking forward and being excited for next season because we can only look up now. That's the biggest thing we need to take from the end of the season. We improved in certain games but it wasn't good enough. We'll come back and hopefully it will be a bit of a brighter season for us. Hopefully we'll have more games where we can celebrate afterwards because we've had too many where we haven't had that feeling."

In terms of pre-season plans, no concrete dates yet for the senior team, but it appears that our U16s have agreed to compete in this year's Denis Law Soccer Tournament in Aberdeen. We join Celtic, Sheffield United, Motherwell, Inverness, and Dundee at the tournament which will be played at Aberdeen Sports Village and Kings College from Thursday, July 18, to Sunday, July 21. Good luck to them!

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Sunderland legend Gary Bennett has urged fans to get behind Paolo Di Canio as he believes the team of him and Ellis Short can make radical changes at the club, for the better! Bennett said: "There are no guarantees in football and ultimately results will decide whether what is happening right now is a good bad thing. But, let's face it, something had to change, and at least there's a plan here and Sunderland are getting on with it quickly. Finishing fourth bottom last season was not acceptable and these changes are obviously being made to avoid it happening again. So I think we just have to roll with it and look to see it as a good thing, until proven otherwise – Paolo Di Canio was a Premier League player for the best part of a decade and so he will have a clear idea of what it needs to succeed in this league. What has been tried before has not brought the big improvements you might have hoped for, given the scale of the investment made, so maybe it is time for a radical new direction."

Our former captain, now radio pundit, stresses that the fact we are signing free players should not discourage fans as it is a good sign that we are acting quickly this window. Benno explained: "The first thing that I think is a good thing is that Sunderland are acting really quickly. How many times have we seen Sunderland not get new signings in until the last week or two of the transfer window? I don't think it is a great thing when two or three first-teamers arrive with the season already underway. The good thing now is that you've got bodies in straight away who will be able to get used to the club and have a better chance of gelling over pre-season. The other good thing is that the type of players seem to be the type of players Sunderland need.

"First off, we need a bigger squad and the early signs are that we are going to get one. But the other issue is that of pace and physique. Sunderland fans have been talking for years about the need to have genuine pace in the side and genuine presence on the pitch but nothing ever seems to get done about. By the looks of it, these players that are being brought in all appear to be young, so you'd expect them to have more speed and stamina. On top of that, they all seem to be six footers, which will address one of the real deficiencies in the squad. It is early days yet and we just have to wait and see but I don't think it's a bad thing that Short and Di Canio are looking at making big changes, given we came so close to getting relegated last season."

Today the club has been linked to signing Uruguayan striker Abel Hernandez from Italian side Palermo, who were relegated from Serie A at the end of last season. However, we face competition from mega-rich French side Paris Saint-Germain who are also vying for his signature. Hernandez only played 14 games for his side last term, scoring once, due to a cruciate ligament injury ruining his season. He is well known for his blistering pace, something which most SAFC forwards lack. However Hernandez' agent Pablo Betancourt has said, "It is also a possibility that Hernandez could sign a contract and remain at Palermo."

Meanwhile, Danny Rose has thanked Sunderland for helping his development as a player. The youngster said, "I have a lot to be thankful to Sunderland for. Martin O'Neill as well. He gave me my chance to play regularly in the Premier League and I have to be grateful for that. I enjoyed my time there, it really helped my development."

Another Italian based player we have been linked with is Inter Milan's Ghana midfielder, Alfred Duncan, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Liverno, the team of reported SAFC target Paulinho. Milan have apparently turned down a £5 million bid for the 20 year old, and want around about £7 million for his services. Of course De Fanti and Angeloni will both have knowledge on the player as they were formally on the books of Inter.

In other news the agent and brother of long-term Sunderland target Mauro Zarate, have spoken of his possible move to the club. His agent, Luis Rizzi, stated, "Sunderland? They would be a viable solution because it is a great club and the Premier League is very charming.There are other demands including that of Velez which would represent a welcome return for Mauro." Roly Zarate claimed, "Mauro wants to go back to Argentina and Velez would be ideal."

James McClean has spoken about his sudden rise to fame and the heroics of Spain's Iker Casillas against his Ireland side. "Two years ago, I was playing in the League of Ireland, so I have come a long way since then and it's all a learning experience. To be here playing against Spain at Yankee Stadium, playing in the Premier League and going to the Euros, it's been incredible. But at the same time, I will never forget where I came from. I think that's important. It would have been nice to have a goal on the CV – a goal against Spain at Yankee Stadium – but it wasn't to be. I did everything right. He dived before I hit it and there was an element of luck as well as world class. But he's not one of the best in the world for nothing, so it just wasn't to be. He was like a cat, wasn't he? He dived and somehow – I don't know how – he saved it. But as I say, he's not one of the best in the world for nothing, is he?"

More news to follow...

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Martin O’Neill took over at Sunderland in December 2011 after the side’s poor start to the 2011-12 campaign saw them toying with relegation and Steve Bruce was the man who had to pay for it. When Marty came in, it had seemed Ellis Short had listened to the fans. In one of his first press conferences he endeared himself to Sunderland fans with the quote “I’m not trying to win any brownie points, but I was a Sunderland fan as a boy.” And with his success at Aston Villa previously, things were looking up for the Black Cats.

In his first game in charge, we were at home to Blackburn, and being 0-1 down at half time, realisation set in that this might not be a fairytale appointment. But to everyone’s surprise, O’Neill had a trick up his sleeve and brought on little-known James McClean with about 20 minutes to go. He was bought during the Bruce era, but was never given a first team opportunity, but once he was on the pitch, it looked a masterstroke to bring him on. It was clear Blackburn had no idea about the Irishman as he ripped their full backs to shreds, and once David Vaughan unleashed an unstoppable 25-yarder, we believed again. Then Seb Larsson was standing over a free-kick in injury time, fate would have it he would score and O’Neill picked up his first win in his first game, but the best was yet to come.

New Years Day 2012, we were at home to runaway Premiership leaders Manchester City, with the likes of Toure, Aguero, Silva, Tevez; the list goes on. We had no chance; I remember me and my dad both agreeing we would settle for a 2-0 defeat, just so our goal difference wasn’t too damaged. How wrong we would be. Each and every player on the pitch put their heart and soul into that game and defended fantastically too, something O’Neill was known for, defensive tactics. And in the last minute Larsson, Sessegnon and Ji bombed up the other end on a counter attack, and when Ji rounded Joe Hart all hearts were in mouths, and every Sunderland fan remember Martin Tyler’s reaction; “Ji, Sessegnon, back to Ji, he’s round the goalkeeper and he’s done it!” Goosebumps, every time.

After that victory we continued our good form over the Christmas period and beyond, right up until mid-February, when we lost 4-0 away to West Brom which was almost the end of our league season as we had already secured survival with O’Neill at the helm. However despite the season petering out, we were all still delighted with the job O’Neill had done in keeping us in the top flight.

Despite this our season was by no means over. For the first time in many years, we had a realistic chance of a cup run. We had reached the quarter finals, with beating teams such as Arsenal and we had come up against our bogey team, Everton. The tie was to be played at Goodison Park and Bardsley gave us an early lead before Tim Cahill, who else, equalised. Despite taking the lead, leaving the ground the majority of us fans were satisfied with the result, giving us a chance to take Everton at the SOL 10 days later. However, once in the ground there was an eerie atmosphere as no one knew what to expect, would we go for a win, or would we sit back and hold out for extra time and penalties, against feared opponents. What we got was a very, very poor performance which lead to us going down 0-2 to the better side on the night. SAFC fans were gutted, just one game away from going to Wembley and we blew it. This seemed to be the catalyst for our season petering out and leading us to winning none of our last eight league games, but despite this we still got a more than creditable 3-3 draw at the Etihad in April, after being 1-3 up with 5 minutes left. The season finished with us in 13 th position, something which every single Sunderland fan would have taken with open arms when O’Neill joined the club in December.

The summer of 2012 was a very promising one as we all expected O’Neill to build on the squad which had almost seen us fall through the trap door if it wasn’t for his intervention. And with the arrivals of Steven Fletcher and Adam Johnson, as well as Carlos Cuellar, some fans thought this could finally be the year we make a sustained top ten finish. Things were looking good at the beginning of the season. However despite all the seemingly positive connotations, something wasn’t quite right. After going the first 5 games unbeaten we were battered 3-0 at Man City, and scraped a 1-1 draw against Newcastle. Then after 2 consecutive home defeats against Villa and Boro, then some fans were worried. After the defeats O’Neill stated his commitment to the cause, but after defeats against West Brom and Chelsea, both at home, then we were in the relegation zone. Some called for O’Neill’s head, but then realised what he had done for the club in his short time here and they quickly shut up.

After this, our form began to improve, including another 1-0 win against the champions City, and a 2-3 away victory to Wigan helped us to eleventh place. But this is when the tide turned. The Wigan win proved to be the last in charge for Marty, as SAFC went eight games without winning, including two very disappointing home draws against Fulham and Norwich. Then came the game against the runaway leaders, this time, Man United. By this time the stuffing had been knocked out of most fans due to O’Neill’s defensive tactics and our inability to score. No one expected any sort of result. Despite going down 0-1, our second half performance suggested that we were up for a battle, and that we were good enough to survive.

However, for Ellis Short, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back, with O’Neill leaving the club without a full season in charge, despite steering us clear from relegation last season. It came as a surprise to many a Sunderland fan; we believed that sacking the manager in April would be too late. However we had to look ahead to the future and PDC was appointed less than 24 hours later, thankfully enough. He then steered the club away from relegation with two consecutive wins against surprising opposition, Everton, then of course Newcastle (0-3), as the new era began at SAFC…

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Well today’s big news is that the clubs new away kit was revealed. The yellow and navy shirt features a rounded collar, traditional club crest and ‘Bidvest’ logo across the chest. The kit also features navy shorts with a yellow trim, along with navy and yellow shorts. John O’Shea, who was one of the players modelling the new kit said: “It’s a really dynamic design and a very bold colour combination, which I’m sure our fans will love.”

Now onto another day full of transfer speculation surrounding SAFC. Today Liverno’s Brazilian striker Paulinho has been linked to us. His agent, Eugenio Ascari said: “ I think that Di Canio’s Sunderland are planning to make an offer soon. Sampdoria’s offer is the most concrete – they have followed Paulinho for two, three months and we have already had contact with them.”

There is also more speculation surrounding Simon Mignolet, with Liverpool this time apparently bidding £8 million for the Belgian. Another player we have been linked with is Saint Etienne’s central midfielder Josuha Guilavogui. The French International helped his side qualify for the Europa League last season, but has also spoke of his desire to play Premier League football: “ I'm young but I know I want to learn about other cultures, other football, other ways to play. One day I may state my desire to leave. I am interested, either at my football culture or in human: you do not speak the language; you get out of the cocoon. Do you feel it grow as a man? That's what I'm also interested in. I have a preference for English and German championships. These are two footballs who talk to me and make me dream. I had the chance to see English games, including Arsenal, Newcastle in December. It finished 7-3! This is a dream. It makes you want to experience these games with many people in the stands.”

Meanwhile, Connor Wickham has admitted that the England U21 side let the country down after their dismal performance at the U21 Championships which saw them lose all three group games, scoring just once: “I don’t think there are any players who are going to be proud of what we put in. Everyone was devastated. I honestly couldn’t tell you what has gone wrong. Going into the tournament we had a lot of confidence. We let the country down and we have let ourselves down in that tournament. We knew we had strength in numbers but obviously when it came down to it, we just weren’t good enough.”

However, Danny Rose reckons that expectations placed on the U21 side were too high. ‘ I don't know why people automatically expect England to be contending for those competitions and winning them. We last won the World Cup in 1966 so I don't know why people put this expectation on England at all. The expectation should drop a little bit, definitely.”

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El Hadji Ba is a French Under-20 International of Senegalese descent who joined SAFC after his contract at French Ligue 2 side Le Havre expired. However, it is likely a compensation fee of around £250,000 will have to be paid for his services due to his tender age of 20. He can play as either a holding midfielder or in the centre of midfield and last season at Le Havre he played 12 games, scoring once. He is unlikely to go straight into PDC’s first team however; it seems he will enter our development squad for the coming season. Ba has represented France at U18, U19 and U20, so he must surely have something about him... Also, in the past he has been linked with clubs like Tottenham and Borussia Dortmund, so we have got ourselves a player, hopefully.

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Hello, and welcome to ALS, it’s time to round up the news surrounding SAFC. Last night the club confirmed its fourth signing of the summer with El Hadji Ba joining from Ligue 2 side Le Havre. His contract at the French side has expired but a compensation fee of around £250,000 has to be paid due to his age. He is a holding midfield player, and the France Under 20 International is likely to feature for the development squad in the coming season.

In some random news, former striker Anthony Stokes, now of Celtic, is under investigation after an altercation with an Elvis tribute act lead Stokes to be thrown out of a club. Anthony Bradley, 48, said: “ I’m as well as can be expected. I had to go for surgery to correct my nose. It was an unprovoked attack. I’m still in shock. It came from nowhere. This guy wasn’t even involved and he stepped in out of nowhere and decided to involve himself.” A nightclub spokesman stated, “A drink was spilled on Anthony Bradley’s coat. Words were exchanged between two groups. There was some altercation. The bouncers were straight in, separated them and turfed Stokes out.”

Meanwhile, another player linked to join us is Luis Cavanda of PDC’s former side Lazio. The Angolan born right back with a Belgian citizenship, has 12 months remaining on his contract so a deal could cost around £2.5 million to bring him to the SOL. With the arrival of Cavanda to the club it could mean Bardsley heading out the other way, with the Scot wanted by newly-promoted Hull.

There are also reports linking us to out-of-favour Inter Milan midfielder Joel Obi. The injury-hit midfielder has a contract till 2017, Newcastle are also vying for his signature. His agent, Renzo Contratto said: “ I can say that Joel is a player liked in the Premier League. The guy had a difficult season but now is fine. He will leave for the Inter pre-season and then we'll see what the club wants to do."

Former SAFC Chief Scout and player Pop Robson reckons that teams should not ignore home-grown talent when looking to purchase players. “I fear it might happen that Sunderland will concentrate solely on the overseas market. They might go for cheaper options, younger players, European players, Croatians, Italians – but they still have to be good enough to play in the Premier League, which is pretty demanding. Norwich is the only team in the Premier League that is fielding a high percentage of English players and I feel that’s a sad situation. It’s a worry. The Premier League has spent a lot of money on academies but we need to keep working on it. It is 40 years since I was top goalscorer with 28 goals in 1973 and that now seems a lot of goals. But back then there were other English players scoring and competing up to that level.”

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Another sunny day in Sunderland, and another Italian linked with joining SAFC. This time it is attacking midfielder Alessandro Rossina currently of Siena who suffered relegation to Serie B and are in the midst of a financial crisis, meaning Rossina is available on the cheap, at about £1.5 million. However with the potential arrival of Rossina, could spell the end for Sessegnon, with Marseille interested and the player apparently stating he is unsettled at the club, which has been the case for the last four transfer windows...

Meanwhile, last night the club confirmed the arrivals of Roberto De Fanti as the newly-created role of Director Of Football, and Valentino Angeloni as the Chief Scout. The pair worked together at prestigious Italian sides Inter Milan and Udinese, and they were vital in the move to bring Paolo Di Canio to SAFC. Angeloni is famed for the discovering of a 17-year-old Alexis Sanchez while at Udinese, who was sold to Barcelona for a fee of over £20 million. Angeloni was also the man who recommended the signings of Cabral, Mobido Diakite and Valentin Roberge, who were all confirmed to be joining the club on free transfers.

In other news, coach Fabrizio Piccareta is studying for his UEFA-A licence so he can be a qualified assistant to Paolo Di Canio next season and reckons the boss is soon to be one of the great managers. “My aim is to stay with Paolo. I am convinced he will be a top manager. He is already, but I mean at the very top level, and very soon. I’ve never met someone so committed and focused on his job. And he has the skills and knowledge to become one of the best. That’s the thing about Paolo that some people don’t understand – that he has massive knowledge, as well as a big personality. Sometimes you only see his emotional side but I can guarantee you he is very deep thinking. His attention to detail is unbelievable, as are his commitment and professionalism. In our partnership, yes, I am the calm one – that is my nature – but people ask if I have to calm him down at times and, no, that’s not the case. It’s not my task, because he doesn’t need it. It can look like an explosion of emotion but he chooses to do that – that is his strength. And it’s genuine; it’s not theatrical. What is theatrical, is some managers putting on a show of composure even if inside they are burning up but they don’t want to look like they are losing composure. Paolo is honest – honest to the people, the fans, the players, himself.”

Meanwhile, apparently Bardo and Kilgallon both face a meeting with the hierarchy of Sunderland on June 20 to decide their punishment for their casino misdemeanours. Steve Bruce is reportedly interested in taking Bardsley to Hull to add to his former SAFC legion now at the KC Stadium.

Meanwhile, PDC reckons that Adam Johnson has the ability to torment defenders like Spurs winger Aaron Lennon. “You look at someone like Lennon, who is a fantastic footballer. But he doesn’t have the same trickery that Adam has got. Adam can play left or right, while Lennon is not a player who can come inside and play one-two combinations. Adam is a player who can demolish his opponents easily. He’s a crucial player. I can help, but if he doesn’t help himself, then he can’t do anything. It’s obvious that change can sometimes help an individual, with a new system or fitness regime or a different relationship with the manager. I can’t judge why and I don’t want to praise myself. But it was easy for me straightaway to have a good relationship. It wasn’t as a friend, more as an older brother, smacking his bottom or saying fantastic, keep going. He scored the winner at Newcastle, but he can still do much better, in terms of defending off-the-ball. But he received the message very clearly so I’m very happy.”

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Mobido Diakite
Mobido Diakite is a centre half who made 83 appearances for Lazio. He arrived in Rome in 2006 from Serie B side Pescara for €300,000 at the tender age of 19. His contract at Lazio expired at the end of the 2012-13 season and the player decided he wanted pastures new. During his spell in the Italian capital, Diakite scored 2 goals. He also has the ability to operate at right back, another position Sunderland are short in. The 6ft 4 man is likely to add steel and grit to a poor SAFC defence.

Valentin Roberge
Frenchman Roberge has finally decided to join SAFC after apparently turning us down on more than one occasion. He has pan European experience having played in the Europa League with Maritimo last season, and has the ability to operate at both left back and centre back. He was also spotted as a youngster by PSG who signed him and despite only reaching their B team, it depicts the obvious potential the Frenchman has. Roberge is known for his tough-tackling style of play and during his stint in Portugal, he made 76 appearances scoring 2 goals.

Cabral
The third free arrival under Di Canio is Cabral, a Cape Verdean defensive midfield player who also like Roberge, has experience of European competition having arrived from FC Basel of Switzerland, who qualified for the Champions League a few times during Cabral’s stint at the club. He operates in a central midfield role and is seen by many as a leader of men. He is more defensive than offensive which means he can provide competition for the places in the side like N’Diaye and Cattermole. In his time at Basel, he played 86 times for the Swiss club, chipping in with 2 goals.

Roberto De Fanti
De Fanti is SAFC’s New Director of Football. He has previously worked with new chief scout Valentino Angeloni at prestigious Italian clubs Inter Milan and Udinese. The position of Director Of Football is a newly created title for SAFC and one in which will hopefully improve both the stature and the fortunes of the club.

Valentino Angeloni
Angeloni was also now on the books as Chief Scout alongside De Fanti , just as he was at Inter and Udinese. He is credited with finding such players as Alexis Sanchez while at Udinese, who transferred to Barcelona for a fee of around £20 million. All three of the signings already made at SAFC; Diakite, Roberge and Cabral, were recommended to Di Canio by Angeloni. Chief Executive Margaret Byrne said: “They bring with them a wealth of experience, knowledge and football contacts from across Europe and indeed the world and we are delighted to welcome them to Sunderland.”

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Sunderland have signed Valentin Roberge, Cabral and Modibo Diakite on free transfers. French centre half Roberge comes in from Maritimo in Portual, midfielder Cabral is out of contract at Basel and central defender Diakite arrives from Lazio.

And on top of that SAFC have also announced that Roberto De Fanti is SAFC’s Director of Football and Valentino Angeloni has arrived from Inter Milan as our new Chief Scout. Sunderland AFC CEO, Margaret Byrne, said: “Roberto and Valentino bring with them a wealth of experience, knowledge and football contacts from across Europe and indeed the world and we are delighted to welcome them to Sunderland. The recruitment of players is of course key for any football club and Roberto and Valentino will work closely with the Head Coach and the Board to identify targets as we look to strengthen our squad for next season and beyond. I would also like to extend our thanks to the President of Inter Milan, Massimo Moratti, who graciously agreed to allow Valentino to make the move to Sunderland.”

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Hello and welcome to ALS. Paolo Di Canio reckons that our fitness levels will go through the roof next season. I’m sure the players will love the hard pre season he has planned for them. “We monitor every training session with the GPS system and the statistics we got showed a big change. Every player covers approximately nine kilometres during a game, with 1.6km of that at a high intensity over 25 yards. The GPS system shows trends. During the training session, individually, they used to cover 2.6km, or 2.6km including the warm-up. Now we cover 7.5km – even in the light sessions. That’s nearly three times. But how can you run 9km against your opponents if you’re not doing something similar in training? The intense moments previously were 230 metres, now we cover 1,200 metres. How can you do it in the game if you don’t prepare yourself during the week? You cannot be ready. If you try, you get injured, or are tired after 10 minutes, so that is why we place such store on working so hard in training. It is all about preparation. I believe we saw an improvement in the last few weeks of the season and I believe we will see it even more next season.”

In other news, it turns out that Manchester City’s John Guidetti’s agent is actually Roberto De Fanti, Sunderland’s director of football. That’s handy since we are in for the young striker!

In more sobering news, former Sunderland keeper Marton Fulop is on a hiatus from football after having a malignant tumour removed. Fulop was with Greek side, Asteras Tripoli last season but has moved back to his native Budapest to recover. He said: “I am sure that, after a few months, I will be ready both physically and mentally, to continue playing football. What is more, I’d like to train between the treatment courses, as the doctors have said this is fine, and, in fact, they heartily recommend it. I am very grateful for all the messages and good wishes – it really helps me that many are thinking of me. When training in February, I felt a sharp pain in my arm, there was bleeding and I could feel that something was pulling the tendon that moves my middle finger, and I couldn’t straighten out my finger. I contacted Doctor Ferenc Tóth, one of the country’s leading hand specialists, who recognised that my hand needed immediate surgery. Since then, a long scar can be seen on my arm, but my hand recovered completely and I could return to playing. My contract has come to an end and, with a successful season behind me, there were some great career opportunities in front of me. But for the time being I cannot dwell on these, and I wouldn’t want to put a club’s management in such an awkward situation that they have to deal with my problem. I’ll be following the Facebook page and from time to time will endeavour to publish my most important news but I ask everyone, including the media, to respect the fact that I’d like to concentrate strictly on my recovery and will be unavailable for comment over the coming months. I didn’t want to cover anything up as I feel I must be honest with the public and those who follow my career. I have thus brought my illness out into the open, the news of my operation, and soon I shall let you know about my full recovery.”

Meanwhile, it turns out that Middlesbrough will struggle to stump up the funds to take Danny Graham off our hands. Boo…

Meanwhile, things aren’t looking too promising in terms of Danny Rose signing a permanent deal at SAFC. Apparently Fenerbache want Spurs’ left back, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, which would see Rose move up the pecking order at White Hart Lane.

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Another day of speculation and the top story today concerns Stephane Sessegnon, who is apparently keen to move back to France, with Marseille sniffing around. There are no quotes to back up the story and possibly no truth to it either, oh well, jounrnos can make up what they want I guess.

In other news, John O'Shea has withdrawn from the Republic of Ireland squad to face Spain in New York on Tuesday because of a family bereavement. A spokesman for the Football Association of Ireland commented: "The FAI, the Irish team management, backroom team and players all offer their sincere condolences to John O'Shea on the death of his Uncle, Jimmy O'Leary, in Waterford this morning."

Simon Mignolet's agent, Guy Vandersmissen, has been chatting about his player’s future and he’s keeping all his options open! He said: “I am the representative of Simon Mignolet. Simon is my player. I’ve been working with Simon since he was 16 years old. At this moment there are some clubs who are interested. For a lot of players there are some clubs interested but Simon still has a two-year contract in Sunderland, so we depend on the position that Sunderland is taking in relationship to an eventual transfer of Simon Mignolet. There is a contract so we have to respect the contract. But I don’t think at this moment we would be prepared to sign a new contract. When there is a new contract the team can block a player [from moving]. There is another two years on his contract, if they want us to stick to that, we will stick to that and perhaps leave after two years if there is an interest in Simon. Should they say now we are prepared to discuss [a new contract in two years] we must be prepared to discuss the option. If they want to make a proposal to Simon, they should come up with a decent proposal and we will then have a look at it. I would say four or five months ago we talked but the situation for Sunderland was not that good. It was not clear that they would have enough quality to stay in the Premiership so it was not the right moment to discuss or sign a new contract because we didn’t want to start up in the Championship next season.”

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Welcome to the weekend as the media continue to think of random Hispanic and Latin names and link them with Sunderland. First up today are Inter Milan midfielder Joel Obi and Manchester City forward John Guidetti. Outgoing gossip is linking Danny Graham to Boro, where he started his career (yes please) and Connor Wickham back to Sheff Weds, on loan.

Now for some ambiguous quotes to back a story linking us with Saint-Étienne midfielder Josuha Guilavogui, who reckons we have made an inquiry for him: “My agent told me about it,” said Guilavogui “I think I’ll have a discussion with my agent and Saint-Étienne to see what we’re going to do. I think they’re going to want to keep me. I hope so. If they want me to go, it’s going to be a bit tough. But the question has to be asked, a lot of things come into the equation, and the fact I work with agents means I need to talk to them.”

Meanwhile, Paolo Di Canio reckons we will be more attacking next season. To be fair, we couldn’t be any more defensive and deep than we were under MON. Di Canio said: “Yes, I want to attack. I don’t want to see my team stay too deep. We know you have to defend because there are many top sides in the Premier League. But we also need the quality to put the opponents in their own half during the game and play football, not just counter-attack. The best teams can counter with three passes and you need that. But I want a mix of football – a team capable of keeping the opposition in their own half, damaging them with movement, quality and intelligent play, and also to counter. It means we need to have quality, athleticism and intelligence. It’s not easy, but I’m sure we can be that team.”

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Well it’s another sunny day in beautiful Sunderland, but news wise we are still scraping the bottom of the barrel, as is the norm at this time of year. However, Son of Pele, Martin Smith, reckons that pre season is always pretty hard on the players after a summer of excess on Dubai, poor souls, but he reckons new season prep will be double hard under the draconian training methods of PDC: “I think it’ll be tough for the players because he’s definitely going to make his mark. I’m sure he’s got everything built in his head now for what he wants to do in pre-season. It’s different to when I was playing, as you got older it changed but when I first started the game it was a case of you finishing [for the summer], off you went and then you’d put a bit of weight on, come back, and lose it. As the seasons went on and the professionalism came into it more you would have a week or two off, then you’d be straight back in to keep yourself fit. You would come back and it wasn’t so hard because you were fit and you’d go to start the football side of it quicker. Fletcher came in and started the season so well; he scored with his first five or six chances and really settled in. The injury curtailed his season and, when he was injured, I think we’ve seen how important he is to the club when he plays. Hopefully he’ll come back in the same sort of form for next season.”

Meanwhile, James McClean is looking to improve his overall game so he can have a better season in2013/14 and he’d like to use his right foot for more than just standing on. That would be good like, however whether he stays at Sunderland, or not, remains to be seen, with Celtic favourites to sign him: “Obviously, there is a lot I can work on in my game to get better. My right foot is one area, it’s important to work on it. And things like the final pass as well. It’s been a difficult season at the club for me, my form was indifferent. I came to England first and played for six months and footballers are not stupid, so they know you after that.”

On whether his future lies at Sunderland, or not, he had this to say: “I’ll look at what happens over the summer and push on and do the best for me personally and whatever comes of that comes of that.”

In other news, Sheffield Wednesday are keen to take Connor Wickham on loan again if he becomes surplus to requirements at Sunderland.

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Part Three of Three, March to May

March
March was the month where fears of relegation grew stronger. The team was playing with a lack of confidence, a lack of creativity and a lack of fight which is essential when becoming embroiled into a relegation scrap. This was apparent in the 2-2 home draw against Fulham. The stalemate was another game against a side around us that we had failed to clinch maximum points from, which that itself, is always going to drag you into trouble. Despite coming back to salvage a point, the gloominess that surrounded the stadium that day was another reminder why a new manager was so desperately needed to boost our survival hopes. Following on from the Fulham draw, an away game to the capital to face whipping boys QPR was our chance to move away from the bottom three. Arguably one of, if not the worst performance of the season by the lads, we didn’t look worthy of our Premier League status as we crashed to a 3-1 loss. Being outplayed by a team full of overpaid egos was hard to take and was the writing on the wall for MON as his sacking was a matter of when, not if.

Just like the visit from Fulham to the SoL, the game against Norwich was another that, on paper, we should be winning with no problem at all. Last season was marred by draws against sides that we should have beaten. The Norwich game was in front of the Sky cameras, and for the neutral, it certainly didn’t live up to the Super Sunday billing. A flat, dull, affair was played out as we left it late again to nick a point. A week later, with the side playing its worst football since our return to the top flight, what better time to welcome the runaway leaders Manchester United? Although we only went down 1-0 to a deflected Robin Van Persie strike, the scoreline could have been so much worse as we showed Fergie’s men too much respect. The game itself can also be remembered as O’Neill’s final match in charge. With seven games of the season to play, it was a gamble that Mr Short had to take as we were only going one way, and that was to the Championship.

No later than 48 hours after the defeat to Man United, Short wasted no time in hiring Paolo Di Canio as Head Coach. At the time, it was a decision which split the fans as Di Canio’s lack of managerial experience gave us little indication as to whether the appointment would be a masterstroke or disaster decision by Short. The whole fascism saga was an added distraction which stole the headlines until PDC and the club finally released a statement prior to the Italian’s first game in charge against Chelsea.

April
A trip to Stamford Bridge was next up as we got to see the immediate effect of PDC’s methods on the team. On first viewing it was pleasing to see a greater intent of desire and dedication by the players to do well. PDC showed no hesitation in changing the line-up as Connor Wickham was handed a start. Wickham was of the stand out performers in a first half that ended with us 1-0 up. However, before we got too carried away by the scoreline, a quick fire double from Chelsea brought us back down to earth as the Blues went on to win by two of the luckiest goals that we have conceded this season.

But just seven days the 3-0 demolition of Newcastle on their own patch was something that everyone connected with the club will savour for the rest of their lives. Three wonder goals supplied by Sess, Johnson and Vaughan were met by three equally memorable celebrations by Di Canio as the song ‘I want dirty knees too’ was born. Tactically, PDC was spot on that day as we dominated from the first whistle. We were superior in every position and even Danny Graham had a good game, which is saying something Other players like N’Diaye, Sess and AJ put in performances of the highest quality which was missing from their game all season. Despite the unsavoury aftermath from the Newcastle fans, it still didn’t take off the shine of the result as we went to work the next day with a never-ending grin on our faces.

After the miracle at SJP, we then overcame bogey side Everton for the first time in what feels like forever. Another goal by Sess earned the victory as the mood around the ground was on another scale to what I have witnessed in a long time of going to the game. Chants of Paolo Di Canio name were sung loud and proud as fans exited the stadium and the optimism was sharply back as took another massive step to beating the drop. Next up was a Monday night trip to the Midlands to face Aston Villa, who were in a far more precarious position than us. A defeat would have probably signalled their relegation, but what actually happened was unthinkable. With confidence soaring and the chance to secure our Premier League status, it was mystifying as to how we simply fell apart and were hammered 6-1. Despite being down to ten men after Sess’ dismissal, a 6-1 romp should have never happened. We hit the self-destruct button in the second half as Villa battered us with goal after goal. It was probably our greatest reality check in some time as results that weekend did not favour us and we fell to 17 th in the table with three games remaining.

May
The last hurdle was upon us as we entered the final month of the season with two winnable home games against Stoke and Southampton to look forward to. However, those matches proved to be signs that the season had taken its toll on the players. Physically, they look jaded as PDC was forced to draft in young players to make up the numbers on the substitute bench. Suspensions to key men, Sess and Gardner as well as injuries to Fletcher and Cattermole were another issue that Di Canio had to contend with as it really was squeaky bum time going into to the climax of a long and underachieving campaign. Consecutive 1-1 draws to Stoke and the Saints were disappointing, but on reflection they were vital points and considering all of our injuries and suspensions, the results weren’t too bad at the end of the day. Going into the final day, we could finally breathe a sigh of relief after Wigan became the final team to be relegated after a midweek defeat to Arsenal kept us on edge for vast periods. It was a good job that Arsenal did us the greatest of favours as an away trip to White Hart Lane was never going to end with us victorious. It was a spirited performance from a make-shift eleven, who were defensively sound for 89 minutes until Gareth Bale did what he does best and rifled in an unstoppable strike past Simon Mignolet to hand Spurs a 1-0 win.

So after 38 games with little to cheer about, that was that. The highlight of the season has got to be the derby win at the Sports Direct Arena, and there is pretty much nothing, apart from the home wins against Manchester City and Everton. It’s been 17 days since the Premier League ended and PDC has begun his revolution of the club with changes in all departments. A new chief scout, director of football and a host of comings and goings look set to pan out as we build for another Premier League season. Valentin Roberge, Cabral, Modibe Diakite are set to arrive on free transfers to join Altringham striker Duncan Whitmore, who is our only summer acquisition thus far. It promises to be another exciting summer for us with plenty of new faces and plenty of the current crop leaving Wearside. Surely things can only get better after our worst season since our return to the top flight seven years ago.

Keep the faith!

Part One and Two of this season review are further down this page…

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Simon Mignolet’s agent, Nico Vaesen, has been keeping his player in the papers by doing another interview, but at least he’s not totally touting him. "I think it is very unlikely that he will sign a new contract. Simon has obviously come to a point where he wants to step up a level and there is a lot of interest in him. He is very ambitious and wants to play in the World Cup, in Brazil, next year. It was a good thing that Sunderland stayed up and it is a fantastic club where he has had three great years. But it is maybe time to step up a level and play for a club competing for a European spot. All teams that are interested in Simon, we direct them to Sunderland. He still has a two-year contract there and any interested clubs have to agree a price with Sunderland first. That is the way we conduct our business."

James McClean reckons he’s grown up and his continual fuck offs off the field are a thing of the past: McClean said: “Both Martin O’Neill and the manager (Trapattoni) have had a word in the past. I feel a bit bad now because I haven’t been the easiest. But I take that on board and I think I have matured a bit in the last few months, and I will continue to hopefully do that. It was a bit of a whirlwind first six months, amazing, top of the world, and then a lot of things happened in between then. But it will help me as a person. I will learn from all that and it will put me in good stead for the future. It was all new to me - I was still the same lad as I was from my time at Derry and that kind of went against me. I want to continue to just be me and what comes with that comes with that. But I have learnt to not say too much. Each manager has their different styles. He came in and he managed to get us safe, so I guess you could say ‘job done’. Hopefully next season, we can push on and do well. It’s been an indifferent season at club level for me. Hopefully I am going to knock that behind me now and push on here with the Ireland squad. It’s been difficult for a lot of reasons which have already been well-publicised. But that’s in the past now and I want to go back sharper, better and stronger for next season and hopefully push on to where I was. The other day gave me a bit of confidence with the two assists, so hopefully if I am called upon again I will do a job.”

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Well the big news today surrounds Titus Bramble who has left Sunderland and then stuck the knife into Di Canio’s back: "I've never played under anyone like him and I've played for some of the best managers around. Steve Bruce, Roberto Martinez and Sir Bobby Robson. He thinks he knows everything, but he has got a lot to learn. He's got a long, long way to go before he gets anywhere near as good as Sir Bobby Robson. He's a young manager trying to stamp his mark on things, but he's making some big mistakes. He's targeted the easy players the ones who are leaving anyway, trying to show he's the boss. I was fined for not going to a weights session. Everyone else at the club thought it was ridiculous, but he's trying to be tough. He comes out in the media and hammers players and he hasn't said a word to them. He's never said anything like that to his (Wickham's) face. He's 19 and the manager is battering him in the media. He's a good coach on the training pitch. Everything is so detailed. He's one of the best I've played for in that respect, but his man management skills need a lot of work. I never got any impression he was racist. From what I saw of him, he doesn't care about a player's colour or creed. Obviously, we were aware of the fascism thing, and the pictures of him doing the salute in Italy, but I've always refused to prejudge anyone and he never gave any indication he held those sorts of views."

Bad news for Danny Rose fans; it seems that we are in for Argentine left-back Lucas Orban. Well that’s according to the player’s agent, Filippo Colasanto, who could be just trying to get his Orban’s name in the press to drum up interest in him. He said: “Sunderland are interested in signing the player. I have spoken with the new director, De Fanti. He called me to get some information about the Orban situation to start negotiations. I know that Sunderland made an approach to Tigre saying that they want to sign him and they are in a position to come to an agreement. We know it is a strong possibility to go and play in England. I am waiting on the decision of the player. There are two or three matches to go (in the Argentine league) and at the moment, he wants to wait until the end of the season to make a decision.”

Meanwhile, it looks like German side, Augsburg, can’t afford to buy Ji Dong-won off us after a successful loan spell there. However, Augsburg general manager Stefan Reuter has not given up hope: “The player knows what he did for us, but we also know what we did for the player.”

Finally, will Danny Rose be coming to Sunderland this summer? Read this and find out…

Dear ALS

Now the season is over and we reflect on what went wrong and why some comfort can be gained in the fact we stayed, no matter how it eventually happened.

We now look forward to next season and how that goes will in the end depend on what quality can be attracted to the club. While I believe that Di Canio is right to bring a degree of discipline to the players, and there seems no doubt that players got away with more under O'Neill than they will under Paolo di Canio I am concerned for the forth coming season. My main concern is that top players will look at Paolo’s strong and disciplined regime and be put off if other clubs are interested.

This was partly brought home to me a couple of Sundays ago when I was getting rid of some rubbish at my local tip in Doncaster. A tall black chap came up to me with a Sunderland programme from the Southampton game; he had seen my Sunderland mini kit in my car window. He introduced himself as Danny Roses uncle. I asked him if Danny would be interested in coming back 2 Sunderland, probably not with Di Canio there he said. Why? I asked. Because he is so strict, Danny isn’t to keen on him. But he loved the fans and if Spurs did decide to let him go the fact he felt appreciated may sway him. So there I believe lays the problem, yes Di Canio is right to bring in discipline, but Premier League players are paid a lot of money, and can if they are good pick and choose where they go if other clubs are interested in them.

The softer option is what most I am sure will take, hope I am wrong though. Whatever happens next season it will not be dull, it will go one way or the other, relegation or Europe.
I can’t wait.

Dave McKeever
Doncaster Mackem

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It’s that time of the year when players are unsure of their futures and are hedging their bets in interviews by putting themselves in the shop window a little, but also half hoping they won’t have to uproot their families again if they can get a wage rise and regular football where they are currently contracted.

First up today is second choice keeper, Keiren Westwood, who at 28 is looking for first team footy having not played a single league game for SAFC last season: “It was not a great season for myself. I haven’t had a chance to play and on that front it has been desperately disappointing, to be honest. So I’m looking to next season now, to get a few games under my belt. Martin O’Neill kept me around (when he could have gone on loan) and I can understand why he did because to have two goalkeepers of good quality so to speak is a must for a Premier League squad. I think, he was more nervous in case anything happened to Simon. He couldn’t really let me go, which was a disaster, really, because it has not gone well for me since - I haven’t played any games and I lost my place with Ireland as well.”

Seb Larsson is also keen to sort out his future as he only has a year left on his deal at Sunderland. He’s hoping to catch up with PDC to find out if he is in his plans: “I have not thought about the future, I have one year left and have a new coach. He (Di Canio) came into a tight situation and was focused on taking the points we needed. It (the future) could possibly be something to discuss during the summer or at the beginning of next season. There have already been a number of changes and it is clear that there will be changes in the squad, particularly because we had an extremely thin squad this year. I felt I got a lot of confidence when he came in, but I do not know his ideas for me for next year, it may emerge. I went as a Bosman last time and it is perhaps not very likely to happen twice in a row. I like it (at Sunderland) and I’m not chasing a move in any way.”

Meanwhile, Adam Johnson reckons we are not actually that shit and if we improved marginally we’d have finished mid table. The league table doesn’t lie mate! Johnson said: “When you look back on the season, some of the early draws jump out at you. If we could have turned some of them into wins then we would have cruised home. Even if we had found another 10% in performances, it would have made a huge difference because we’d have won a lot more points. Some of the games we lost and the mistakes we made along the way were really frustrating. That’s the story of the season. We were close to being very good; that was the most frustrating thing. I looked at teams above us who were safe before us and it’s even more frustrating, but we only have ourselves to blame. We need to use the frustration in a good way. We will try to push on and be better for next season.”

19-year-old Duncan Watmore who PDC has brought in Conference side Altrincham, is well aware of the thin line between success and failure in football: "I've always recognised how volatile the football world is. One minute you're making it, the next you're gone. So I've always thought, no matter how successful I get, I was always going to stick with my degree and make sure that was the main thing. I want to prove myself and hopefully I can. I'm looking forward to doing so. My main focus is just to become a better footballer. I'm looking forward to it, definitely. But I'm moving to live on my own, and I'm going to be in a full-time job while studying. It'll be hectic. It all happened within a week. They put in a bid, then they negotiated. Four or five days later they said they agreed and then two days after that they invited me up for the medical. It all happened very quickly. I wouldn't have predicted this two months ago. It's all been so crazy for me, and it's come out of nowhere. All this season I've just been thinking about doing well for Altrincham. I assumed I'd be there next season, and then this offer came along. I think whatever changes he does bring will be for the better of the club," he said. "I'm very happy with being disciplined and I think it's very important. Keeping the players in line is a good thing. The aim is to be working under him, so I want to get that opportunity and hopefully if I play well, I might get the chance."

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Well there’s not much going on today, except the odd quote and the same old players being linked with moves to and from SAFC…

However, Ahmed Elmohamady has taken a swipe at his former boss Martin O’Neill , why not, everybody else has! The Egyptian said: “He chose certain players and dropped others – and I was unjustly sidelined. That is why I was very happy to win promotion with Hull. It kind of compensated for the rough year at Sunderland.”

Meanwhile, former Sunderland defender Dickie Ord reckons that Paolo Di Canio saved us from the drop. “I think it was a bit of an impact decision from the club as nobody expected it. To be fair to them it’s turned out great, there’s a buzz of excitement around as everybody hopes he can turn the club’s fortunes around. A club the size of Sunderland should be looking at the top 10. People will never forget the Newcastle game. The fans will always hold him in high regard for that. He’s got pre-season to start building his own team, which is when he can be judged properly – in fairness he’s done an excellent job so far.”

In other news, Alfred N’diaye believes he’ll be even better next season now that’s he’s got used to the pace of the Premier. “I am looking forward to my first full season, after joining halfway through in January . And I think I will be better next season because I know more about English football than when I came here. I know my team-mates better now and I know things like how they want to receive the ball. I think I am better now than I was in January, and I hope I will carry on improving. I would like to score more goals, because I scored four or five goals in Turkey – it’s not my main job, but I want to contribute . It is very different to Turkish football and to French football . It is a different style and when I first came here it took me time to realise that. Now I know more about English football and I am more comfortable playing here. The more games I play, the better I will be.”

Connor Wickham reckons he can improve under Paolo Di Canio. Let’s hope so. Wickham said: “I don’t know (what to make of it). I just saw it. It is just down to me to take on what I see in the papers. I don’t really read the papers anyway but I am fine, I will get my head down, keep working and show him what I can do when I get back. Our relationship is fine. He has had words on the training pitch, and helped me along. He said he will help me improve as a player so for me there is nothing but positive vibes from him. I can’t wait to get back to Sunderland and just work hard again. I have played the two games that I have been fit for and come on for the other halves. I feel strong, I feel confident in the manager and that I will get a chance. Hopefully if I do get a chance, I will take it. All the boys are really looking forward to what is to come. We had a week in Turkey, which prepared us physically for the weather and the demands of the heat, the pitch and the surface. The vibe in the camp is good and we are all looking forward to Wednesday night. I don’t think the belief has ever been stronger. Walking around the camp and at dinner - you can feel it everywhere you go. We’ve had the coaching staff and everyone drumming into us how the important tournament is. I don’t think anyone has got any doubts in the team that we can’t do well.”

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There’s not much real news knocking about right now, but that won’t change until July 1, when player’s contracts expire and they all return from holidays and move clubs. However, the papers are reporting that Phil Bardsley will find out on Monday if he has a future at SAFC following CasinoGate. Word has it he’ll still be on holiday then and he’s going to Hull anyway, possibly with Lee Cattermole, so there’s no story there.

Meanwhile, David Vaughan reckons he can play a big part at SAFC next season after recovering from a long-standing groin problem. I predict he’ll either be on the bench or move to Blackpool. “It was an issue all season really, and probably last season a bit as well. It’s something that I’ve got to work on and keep paying attention to in the gym. Hopefully, though, I’ve turned a corner and it won’t be too much of an issue next season. I’ve seen a few different medical people, and the Welsh medical staff have helped me out as well. They’ve given me a programme, as well as the Sunderland staff. So hopefully that will cure the problem. It’s not a major issue these days – more something that needs to be managed – because it can cause problems if it’s not looked after properly. It’s down to me to work a bit harder in the gym and things like that, but I’m doing that and hopefully I’ll come back for a full pre-season and be able to show the best of myself. I think you reach your best form when you’re playing consistently, and that has been something of a struggle for me at times. Next season though, fingers crossed, I’ll be injury-free and be able to make more of a contribution.”

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It looks like our first proper singing of the PDC era will come in the shape of Lazio centre-half Modibo Diakite. The 26-year-old Frenchman is available on a Bosman and has made 83 appearances for Lazio, but is currently unable to command a regular place in the team, so is looking to swap Rome for Sunderland!

It looks like we might raid Celtic Park for their Geordie keeper, Fraser Forster, if we can’t hold onto Simon Mignolet and the Scottish papers are also linking us with their forward, Gary Hooper. Hopefully Foster won’t be required because he’s a Mag and let’s face it they never work out here at SAFC, do they?

Meanwhile, John O’Shea is pretty pleased with Ireland’s performance and 1-1 score line against England and thinks the two countries should meet more often. “I think the games should happen every couple of years because we’re neighbours. The atmosphere between the fans was fantastic. There are fantastic memories growing up from watching Ireland v England games. And young lads around Ireland will get inspiration from watching this week’s game. The fans gave us fantastic support and it wasn’t a celebration from us at the end because we had got the result. We just wanted to show that we appreciate them travelling over to support us. We’re very pleased. But we had a few chances to counter-attack better than we did and we need to improve on that. England dominated possession and they were pushing high up the pitch and with Shane Long in behind, we could have taken advantage of that a bit better. We had one or two chances especially when England were pushed up to the half-way line and we won the ball back. We had a few nice passes but the final pass let us down. That was a bit disappointing but, overall, we were very pleased. You know when you come to Wembley with the passes they have, the threats in behind they have and the likes of Michael Carrick and Frank Lampard playing balls when they’re not even looking in that direction. We were fully aware of the threat that they had. We dealt with it quite well. It was just unfortunate that they scored shortly after we’d scored.”

In other news, Jack Colback has been looking back at the 2012-13 season. Let’s face it; he could have just said that apart from beating the Mags it was wank. “We were disappointed to end with a defeat; obviously we wanted to go down there and make it hard for them and we did well until [Gareth] Bale popped up at the end. Overall it was a disappointing season for us. We expected a lot more and certainly didn’t expect to be scrapping. The new gaffer has come in now, he’s got his own ideas and I’m sure he’ll be looking forward to starting a fresh campaign. The win away at Newcastle was brilliant for us at the time and great for the fans because we owed the fans a win over them. To follow up against Everton gave us a great lift which is why it was a bit of a shame we couldn’t get wins against Southampton and Stoke at home. We could’ve easily finished top ten but it’s a tough league and every game is tough, the main thing was, when we found ourselves in that position, the main thing was to stay up and we achieved that.”

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Part Two of Three, December to February

December
With a busy schedule of seven games in the festive period, we showed signs that we were improving. However, the 2-1 defeat away to Norwich started off the month in disappointing fashion as a first half domination by The Canaries gave us a mountain to climb in the second 45. The early December trip to Carrow Road was contested in front of the Sky cameras and on this showing, we looked like a team destined for relegation.

After a 1-3 defeat to Chelsea, a scoreline most people would have predicted, a midweek game against fellow strugglers Reading at the Stadium of Light was next on the agenda. At the time, this was our biggest game of the season as anything other than a win would have had us staring into the depths of the ‘R’ word. Although it was the match to mark the midway point of the season, a convincing victory was imperative to renew some optimism around a gloomy Wearside. In the end, we overcame a poor Reading side, winning 3-0, which earned our second home win of the campaign. Just a few days later, our joy was short lived as our annual defeat at Old Trafford reminded us of the gulf in class between us and the big boys. Frazier Campbell was on the score sheet that day, which would be the last we would see of him before his move to Cardiff.

Next up was our longest journey of the season as we faced the long drive to Southampton, although the players enjoyed an easier route by plane. This was a tough match to call and one we needed something to take away. To everybody’s relief, Steven Fletcher netted the winner with a typical poacher goal to send us home happy just in time for the Festive Season. And Christmas was truly a merry one as we celebrated Boxing Day with a third consecutive 1-0 home win over Manchester City. It might not have been as dramatic as the season previous when Ji-Dong-Won put Joe Hart on his arse to score in injury time, but it was great to see City old boy Adam Johnson bag the winner… even if it took us a while to figure out if the ball went in or not. Rounding off 2012, we went down 2-1 to Spurs at the SoL. Despite the defeat, we performed well and even took the lead from the unexpected strike from stand-in-skipper John O’Shea. But, like many teams this season, we were subject to a dazzling display by the player who won all the awards on offer this campaign, Gareth Bale.

January
2013 started with a trip to Anfield and a game that none of us will want to remember. A resounding 3-0 demolition by Liverpool was a polar opposite of the first game of 2012 and the unsavoury aftermath of some of our coaches (not ALS ones) being hit by bricks from the Liverpool ‘fans’ made the night worse. Anyhow, the following Saturday meant the return of the FA Cup, which saw us take 5,000 fans to Bolton in the hope of a repeat cup-run from last season. To our disappointment, we could only muster a 2-2 draw, although we were 2-0 down. But, the replay took the shine off a good day out at the Reebok as we were defeated 2-0 at home, which meant another early exit from a domestic cup competition at the hands of a lower league opposition. To make the cup exit even more frustrating, it baffled me how we could perform so badly after we played our best 90 minutes of football against West Ham in between the games against the Trotters. The 3-0 win over the Hammers was our most positive, attacking and productive display that we have played in a long, long time. The players performed with a swagger that had been missing for much of the campaign, which begs the question why can’t we do it more often. This was evident again in the 3-2 away win to Wigan, which has turned out to be one of the most significant three points gained this season. We made hard work of the win that day after sitting comfortably on a 3-1 advantage for most of the game, but I guess with Sunderland, we never do things the easy way do we?

The final game of the month was another one to forget after we played out a 0-0 draw at home to Swansea. The match will only be remembered for Danny Graham’s part in the proceedings as a move to us was reportedly close to completion with just a couple of days left in the transfer window. A little less than 48 hours later, Graham put pen-to-paper on a contract with us, setting Mr. Short back with £5million that would go on to be the worst £5m he has parted with to date. Don’t worry people, my rant against Graham will follow later on in this review, but at the time I actually believed that it was a bargain deal for us… No really, I did! (Fool!)

January also saw a number of new arrivals and departures. Alfred N’Diaye signed from Turkish outfit Bursaspor for £3.8m to add some steal in the middle of the park. He was joined by fellow man mountain, Kader Mangane, who signed on a loan deal and who would go on to be one of the most pointless signings in our history. Among those who left us, it was a shame that we had to say a farewell to everybody’s favourite social-networkers, Frazier Campbell and David Meyler, who joined Cardiff and Hull City respectively.

February
In a month that was relatively short of fixtures due to international breaks, it still should have been one that saw us earn a number of points. With games against Reading and West Brom sandwiched between a fairly tough visit from Arsenal, no-one would have expected nothing at all from these three encounters. But, it was arguably our worst month of the season. A 2-1 defeat at the hands of Reading, who although were enjoying a good run thanks to goals from Adam Le Fondre, was hard to take as it is a game that we should not leaving empty handed with. The game also saw Danny Graham make his debut, but the striker could not make an instant impact like others, such as Djibril Cisse, Asamoah Gyan and Darren Bent, have in the past. A week later, we came up against Arsenal who, at the time, looked unlikely to finish in the top four. A Santi Cazorla strike claimed the points for the Gunners, who were lucky to win after a spirited second half performance from us pushed them all the way. Strangely enough, this is the only defeat of the season that I can look back on with any pride in our performance. After a couple weeks without Premier League action, we returned with a trip to the Midlands to face West Brom, who despite a great first half of the season, were beginning to fall down the table. But, I suppose if any team is looking to end a bad run of form, then a game against Sunderland should always be one to be happy about! On this occasion, we kept up our woeful record against West Brom by going down 2-1. With a few months left of the season, our poor consistency was our greatest flaw and with MON still in charge, things were becoming alarmingly the same every week as he wasn’t his usual charismatic self, which was evidently rubbing off on the players.

Part One of this season review is further down this page…

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Ahmed Elmohamady has admitted he would love a move to Steve Bruce's Hull City. The Tigers have just been promoted to the Premier League and after Elmo enjoyed a loan spell there last season, it seems he wants to make his stay permanent. The Egyptian had this to say: "It's difficult as Paolo [Di Canio] has come in and he has different rules, he's a different character, everything is different. You are player of the season [at Hull], you get promoted with a club and you are happy. It's now important to start happy and that means I want to stay in Hull as the fans, the manager and the players have all been so fantastic.

Elmo was also complimentary about Steve Bruce, who initially brought him to Sunderland: "Brucey is a fantastic manager, with a great personality. He sat with me and told me if you want to stay in England, and stay a long time, you have to listen to the manager and concentrate on your football. There is huge difference between Egypt and England, and I needed lots of advice and thankfully he was willing to work closely with me. It's now all down to my agent, but I would love to keep playing with Brucey as the people of Hull are fantastic."

A man who is eager to play for Sunderland however is Alfred N'Diaye, who believes that with a few changes we have the potential to make a much bigger impact next season."There are a lot of possibilities for Sunderland. I think we will add players and supporters should be excited. There may be changes but the aim is to move forward. I think we can move forward – we have players of quality who can do more and can play better and perform better. I think the top ten must be our target. It must. It is a good club with good fans, a good stadium and a good coach. Everyone is good in the club, so why not? Swansea finished eighth this season – they are not a better club than Sunderland are so why shouldn't we aim for this?"

Kader Mangane has also admitted that he wants to play in the Premier League (actually play a game, not sit on the bench), although the team he joins may not necessarily be Sunderand: "I want to play and stay in Europe. European leagues are the best in the world. I still have a contract with Al-Hilal until 2015, but I was really impressed by the way Sunderland made me love the Premier League."

Following the departure of Bryan 'Pop' Robson, it seems we have our eyes on a new chief scout in Inter Milan's Valentino Angeloni. We already look set to bring in Italian agent Roberto De Fanti as director of football this summer and it seems we're keen to bring in Angeloni to work under him.

A bit of transfer news now, and there's word of a deal for Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster which would involve James McClean going the other way. We'd do well to hang onto Mignolet this summer, but Forster is a promising young keeper and certainly would not be the worst replacement should the Belgian jump ship. Alternatively with Keiren Westwood looking for first team football, Forster could prove a great backup for Mignolet.

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Simon Mignolet has been chatting about last season. Can we just forget it please and make him sign a new deal? “As a footballer, you want to do well and want to win games and finish higher in the table than 17 th. On that point, it was a disappointing season. But then again, there’s a reason for that and hopefully next year we can do a lot better. Of course, when a new manager comes in, there’s new things around and since he’s come in, all the games we’ve played – apart from the Aston Villa game – there were positives. So that’s good for the future. During the season, you don’t really think about how things are going because you still have a lot to fight for, even if that’s avoiding relegation. You’re focused on that – not what your hopes were in the past. So during the season, we were always looking ahead. But now the season is over, you can make a judgement on how well we’ve played and how bad we’ve played. Now is a time to look back over the season and for everyone to look in the mirror to see what they can do better for next season.”

In transfer news/gossip, Hull City are in the process of completing a £2m deal for Ahmed Elmohamady, which will boost our bank balance and we are being linked with former Juventus star Milos Krasic, who is currently at Fenerbahce. His agent, Dejan Jokismovic, said: “Milos needs to play and he’s not getting that chance at Fenerbahce. Krasic has had offers from the Premier League and we will be considering a move. Milos and his wife are happy in Istanbul, however he also needs to be happy at work. He’s on high wages at Fenerbahce and still has three years on his contract. He hasn’t played a full 90 minutes once and he’s a great player. There are only three or four players on his level in his preferred position.”

Finally, we’re also being linked with Bournemouth winger Matt Ritchie who was with Di Canio at Swindon. Not really the type of player we want, quality wise, but there you go.

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Sunderland AFC has announced their new sponsors and the are… the South African based BFS Group Limited. Yeah, I know I’ve not heard of them either! Sunderland AFC chief executive Margaret Byrne said: “We are absolutely delighted to be entering into a partnership with The BFS Group and Bidvest.  The groups’ credentials in terms of community support are akin to our own and this takes our club to a whole new level in terms of its international commercial activity. Whilst Sunderland will always be a club defined by its proud regional history and heritage, in order for the club to continue to move forward, building our reputation and presence internationally becomes a key focus. I am sure this will be a very fruitful partnership for both parties.”

Bidvest’s Brian Joffe said: “Sunderland AFC is the perfect partner for us in the UK where we deliver food and drink to over 50,000 businesses each week. The support that Sunderland AFC offers to their local community, setting up the Foundation of Light and now supporting development of initiatives further afield mirrors the Bidvest spirit of investing time and funds back into the markets we operate in.”

Well it’s a busy day at SAFC cos they have also announced their retained list and on top of bringing in Altrincham’s teenage striker Duncan Whatmore, we are about to announce the signing of 24 year old Swiss midfielder Cabral. Neither are the high profile purchases that fans crave, but I’m sure many more big money buys will follow. Here’s the retained list.

Goalkeepers
Simon Mignolet, Keiren Westwood, Jordan Pickford, Joel Dixon

Defenders
Phil Bardsley, Carlos Cuellar, Wes Brown, John O’Shea, David Ferguson, Scott Harrison, Liam Marrs, Connor Oliver, John Egan, Louis Laing, Jordan Watson

Midfielders
Lee Cattermole, Sebastian Larsson, Craig Gardner, Jack Colback, David Vaughan, Alfred N’Diaye, Adam Johnson, James McClean, Ahmed Elmohamady, Stephane Sessegnon, Alejandro Gorrin, Billy Knott, Adam Mitchell, Craig Lynch, George Honeyman

Strikers
Steven Fletcher, Danny Graham, Connor Wickham, Mikael Mandron, Ji Dong-won, Jordan Laidler.

Several out-of-contract players have been released including Titus Bramble, Matthew Kilgallon, Ryan Noble, Adam Reed and Ben Wilson. Loan players Danny Rose and Kader Mangane have returned to their parent clubs.

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Well I hope you are all enjoying the Bank Holiday Weekend. Some of us have to work though and ALS is open 9-5 today. To the news and PDC is apparently keeping tabs on Villa’s Andreas Weimann and is keen to bring in several new faces in over the summer. However, at the same, he’s also determined to hang onto our best player: “It is clear that we have to bring in players over the summer – half-a-dozen, maybe more. We finished near the relegation zone and so it is obvious that we need to make changes to make sure that we are not in this situation next season. But at the same time we already have some quality players here, and I want them to stay. I want to build something here at Sunderland and take the club forward – that is my mission. So the last thing I want to do is to let any of our quality players leave. Simon is a top class goalkeeper . He’s very important to us.”

The gaffer’s also reckons we will be the fittest SAFC side in history next season: “My regret is that I only had seven weeks, but it’s not an issue because we were okay (in the relegation battle). But for the future, you will see the fittest Sunderland team that has ever been. That has to be the base for a footballer. In the first two weeks, they felt a bit heavy, but then you could see the difference. Imagine the change after one year. They (the players) should realise that two months ago in the same situation, what would they have done? I watched the Norwich game when it was the opposite, with 10 versus 11, and they didn’t have one shot on target. The best chance came to (Grant) Holt at the end of the game when he was one vs one with (Simon) Mignolet. Sunderland only had the penalty. Norwich were on top and were the better side. But then we played against the most physical and tallest side in the league ( Stoke) and we were on top in the second half with better possession - 54 per cent vs 46. We were running forward and running back after only four weeks (of Di Canio’s reign).”

Meanwhile, Adam Johnson is hoping we’ll be more attacking under PDC than we were with MON. I’d say that’s a given mate: “Hopefully next season we’ll start causing teams more problems, attacking teams higher up the pitch rather than just defending 30 games out of 38 in a season. It’s been tough for our attacking players especially. I know we haven’t created as many chances as we wanted to but the gaffer wants us to play more free-flowing and to be more exciting and that’s something to look forward to. After this season you just have get a good start next time and see where it takes us.”

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Good day! It’s another lovely day in sunny Sunderland. First up the transfer gossip. Now remember that journos have nothing to write about this time of year, so a lot of these stories will be made up, or just pure speculation. In other words don’t believe it until it happens. The Sundays are linking us with Auxerre’s Cameroon international midfielder Georges Mandjeck and Celtic are sniffing around James McClean, which seems like the perfect solution for all concerned.

Elsewhere, Carlos Cuellar reckons that Paolo Di Canio had no choice but play everyone out of position against Spurs last Sunday, simply because we hardly had any players left. Yeah, we know mate! “I think the tactical plan was nearly perfect. Everyone felt comfortable and everyone helped each other with communication. There were no moments where Tottenham were left one-on-one. But the way we approached the game, nobody was thinking ‘it’s just the last game, we can relax’. We wanted to work hard and win the game. But sometimes, it’s an unbelievable goal that they score. We were defending very well and tried to play on the counter-attack. We know that’s difficult because they have great pace up front and you can’t leave any gaps. But the movement of the team’ and how we approached the game tactically, was very good. We know we’ve got good quality and good players. We knew it was going to be tough at Spurs, but we felt comfortable in the way we were defending. It’s very disappointing because, in the last minute, Bale gets to shoot from so far out and scores an unbelievable goal. We could have avoided that situation and prevent him shooting from there. It was tough at that moment because we were playing with 10 men, but defending well. But’ in the end, they’ve scored from such a long distance. To finish the league away from home with a point at Tottenham would have been good. But when you lose, it doesn’t matter how good the performance is, you can never be happy. We were really close to a point.”

Meanwhile, Simon Mignolet reckons that the experience gained by the likes of Mikael Mandron, Billy Knott and Adam Mitchell during their substitute cameo appearances in the last few games of the season with help their development no end: “One of the positives from last weekend was the young lads who have gained a bit of experience. It’s not only playing the game, but also going away with the first-team and seeing what it’s all about to prepare yourself for a Premier League match. That will give them a boost and they’ll come back into pre-season with a lot more hunger to play. If you stay organised as a unit, then you make it easier for yourselves individually. As a back four, we did well. It wouldn’t have made any difference to the table, but a point and a clean sheet in the last game would have been a nice end to the season. We just have to take the good things from the performance and take that into next season. We did our best against a very good Tottenham side, who wanted to win very badly. So to put in a performance like that, we can take a lot of credit.”

In other news, Gary Bennett reckons Paolo Di Canio’s disciplinary crackdown is a good thing and should come as no surprise. I remember a few scrapes you got yourself into back in the day though Benno! “It doesn’t surprise me that the manager has rules,” he said. “All clubs have rules. The only reason eyebrows have been raised is because Paolo Di Canio has spoken out about things that are usually dealt with in-house. He obviously didn’t like what he found at the club and wanted to get it off his chest. But I think the fans will be pleased that he has shown that he won’t put up with indiscipline. Wherever you work, you can’t turn up late and expect to get away with it. Clubs have rules and a system of fines. Depending on what you do wrong it might be �20, or 10% of your weekly wage or right up to two weeks’ wages for serious matters. Some managers are more strict than others, but Di Canio will have told his players that he will come down hard on them if they break his code. In a way, they will welcome that because they know exactly where they stand. Of course they won’t like it if they get fined – I didn’t like it when I was fined. No one likes losing money. But if you are in the wrong, you have to accept it and make sure you don’t make the same mistake again. Di Canio was clearly not happy with what happened and left them out as a result. Of course, Sunderland were safe when they went to Spurs – it would have been interesting to see whether he would have left them out if they needed to win or draw a Spurs to stay up! But it is not the first time a manager has done something like this. Remember when Roy Keane was manager, he left three players behind because they were a couple of minutes late for the team bus for a game at Barnsley. You can’t do things like that, and those players learned their lesson.”

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Well summer seems to have arrived in Sunderland at last, but there will no holiday for PDC as he sets about tidying up the mess that is Sunderland Football Club. His first task will be to open contract talks with Simon Mignolet and offer him a wage rise to stop Arsenal and Liverpool sniffing around. Di Canio said: “I will be working, even if I go back to Italy for three days. I will still spend 20 hours on the telephone or go to Milan to meet Roberto. I have many things to do. My family know what it is like and they may join me at some point. But I did that in League One or League Two and the main job starts now. This club needs to take a massive step for everybody because we want to change everything here.”

Di Canio’s first buy of the summer is 19 year old forward Duncan Watmore, who has joined us from Altrincham Town. But do not flap, he’s an academy prospect and won’t be featuring for the first team just yet. Watmore said: “I am delighted at the opportunity Sunderland have given me and excited by the move. They have one of the finest academies in England and the Sunderland people have been very welcoming and professional throughout. I also want to put on record my thanks to Altrincham for giving me my chance and developing me. The whole club have supported me all the way.”

Sunderland academy manager Ged McNamee added: “We are pleased to welcome Duncan to the club and wish him the best of luck.”

Meanwhile, York City are looking to snap up SAFC youngster Adam Reed, whose contract is up at the SOL. York boss Nigel Worthington explained: “His agent has rang me and he knows I like the lad. He has obviously been on a certain level of wages at Sunderland but there has to be a sense of realism in that respect and, if that’s the case, then I will put the ball in their court. I am hoping they come back with something sensible and reasonable and his agent has told me he thinks it would good for the boy because he enjoyed his time with us and he feels he could learn a lot working under myself, which was nice to hear.”

In other news, Sunderland’s Youth Team coach Craig Liddle has left the club and will, no doubt, be replaced by some random Italian with an unpronounceable name!

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Apparently it’s almost summer, well you wouldn’t know it! I was hoping for a few beers outside in the sunshine in our first football free weekend. Oh well…

Meanwhile, Alfred N’Diaye reckons that Paolo Di Canio’s supposedly draconian approach to training is actually quite normal! He said: “I am in England but I have an Italian manager, who is very similar to what I am used to from France. His mentality is no different for me. It is more different for English players but for me it is normal. When I played in France, I am used to it. For me, football is like that. For me it is OK. The new manager has a new mentality. For me and everybody it is not a problem, it is a new mentality but we accept it. Next season we will move forward together. We will play better and move forward. The important thing is we are safe in the Premier League. We have to start next better and to play better next year. I have enjoyed life in England so far. We have not had the results I wanted to have but I have enjoyed my first six months here. I like the football, it really suits me. It is fast football, it is about the fight and I love this. The Premier League is just fantastic: big stadiums, the fans are incredible and the atmosphere at Sunderland is amazing. Every week the stadium is full and we have big support. I like this and I want to help bring success to this club.”

On the transfer front, Hull are keen to make Ahmed Elmohamady’s loan into a permanent £2million deal, which would be handy for us, but it seems that a few other clubs are keen on him too.

In other news, Premier League new boys are apparently courting Danny Graham in a £4m move. Mint, I’ll drive him to Wales if it speeds to move up.

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Part One of Three, August to November

August
The start of this season promised so much. It was a productive summer that got us all excited about the prospect of a top half finish. The capture of Steven Fletcher and Adam Johnson within hours of each other on the same day was an indication that Martin O’Neill and Ellis Short meant business. With the acquisition of free agents, Luis Saha and Carlos Cuellar, plus the loan signing of Danny Rose, the squad looked capable of producing a decent season. After a great opening day goal less draw at The Emirates, I don’t think there has been a greater optimism going into the first home game against Reading. Unfortunately, a waterlogged pitch on a day that was still the season of summer resulted in a postponement to send us home with a huge degree of disappointment. However, a comfortable 2-0 victory over League 2 Morecambe in the Capital Cup followed days later which was our first glimpse of the team on home soil. Two goals from James McClean sealed the win that night.

September
Up next was a tricky away trip to Swansea who were adjusting to life without Brendan Rogers under Michael Laudrap. This game was the first sighting of Adam Johnson. We’ve yet to taste defeat by the Swans since their promotion in 2011 and we looked on course to take all three points when Steven Fletcher began to justify his £12million transfer fee by scoring twice with poacher finishes. But, it wasn’t to be as we conceded late on from who else but that sod Michu. A week later came our first league game of the season against Liverpool, which was an emotional affair due to the ongoing Hillsborough proceedings that were taken place at the time. It’s fair to say we didn’t merit a draw that day as the Reds’ dominance in the second half deserved the win. However, it was great to see Fletcher find the net again as it looked like we finally found the man to fill Darren Bent’s money grabbing boots. Another away trip followed, this time to West Ham and we got another customary draw to make it four points from four games when old foe Kevin Nolan stole a point with minutes remaining. Looking back, the draws that we played out at the beginning of the season were actually good results. I mean visits to Swansea and West Ham are never an easy occasion to go there and win. Both sides have showed this season that their home form has been the foundations of their moderate success. After the late upset at Upton Park, we were handed an away tie against MK Dons in the Capital Cup. Although we were clear favourites it, The Dons have always looked a good team at home and the threat of an upset was playing on my mind. However, a solid 2-0 win booked a place in the next round as there was a belief that we could do well in the competition. By the end of September, things were looking good after we bagged our first three points of the campaign against Wigan, courtesy of Steven Fletcher’s fifth goal in four games in the red and white. ‘He Scores When He Wants’ was becoming a frequent chant at the SoL, but following the Wigan game, he failed to find the net until mid-November.

October
Our unbeaten run of seven games in all competitions was ended when we produced one of our worst performances of the season away to Man City at The Etihad. Despite the inevitability of a defeat, we couldn’t even salvage any pride in our performance as we showed the reigning Champions far too much respect. A 3-0 spanking condemned us to our first loss, but the scoreline could have so easily been worse. After a two week international break, it was all systems go again and the fixture that we were all looking forward to. The home clash against the Mags is always our biggest game of the season, but we were again denied victory as we could only manage a 1-1 draw thanks to Demba Ba’s arse. After that, guess what, another draw, this time to the destroyers of passing football, Stoke, it truly was Halloween on Wearside when Middlesbrough ruined our hopes of another cup run on a cold and miserable midweek night game. Regardless of the fact that Martin O’Neill’s position was still firmly stable, this was a sign that the cracks were starting to show. Tactically, his negative approach to the game had some fans beginning to question him.

November
By the time November came round, we only had nine points on the board, which left us under-achieving to what we had imagined in pre-season. Too many draws and not enough passion to win was what it came down to if you ask me, and it was leaving me with negative thoughts towards O’Neill’s philosophy. This was evident in the three defeats in five matches in November as we went down to Aston Villa, Everton and West Brom. With the possible exception of Everton, losing to home against Villa and The Baggies was particularly displeasing. We were simply bullied both times by the opposition and were defensively poor. Yet, the 3-1 away victory over Fulham, who are usually solid at home, gave us just our second victory of the campaign, which was coincidentally only MON’s second victory since beating QPR 3-1 in March, 2012. The month was rounded off by a stalemate at home to basement boys QPR, which was Harry Redknapp’s first game in charge and what should have been ‘Arry’s first win as were outplayed for the entire 90 minutes. The mood around the SoL was becoming more glum as MON stuck to his stubborn ways of fielding the same eleven week in week out and not making substitutions until it was too late.

To be continued…

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After wishing that the season was over and Sunderland were safe for a few months, I’m just beginning realise how boring the close season is. However, the manager is still keeping things interesting for us. After slagging off much of his squad of late, justifiably many would argue, he’s decided to praise someone, John O'Shea. "I didn't have any doubt about him, in a natural way in the morning he's first out for the warm-up and he's always top of the group, always trying to encourage others, which is important, always on his toes. Sometimes when I talk about tactical situations I see the young players just shut their mouths and look to the sky. John O'Shea always listens. You can be the best manager you can but if you have one or two players - I don't say 11 - that deliver the same message it's crucial because the others are maybe going to forget. He's positive and intelligent "It's easy for a few of them (Sunderland players, to be as professional as Di Canio would like), but for the others it is still difficult. It is very heavy for some of them. For me it is normal, for John O'Shea it is normal because he comes from an environment where the people used to throw boots in people's face and the player would say, 'Thanks, the best manager in the world, thanks Sir Alex (Ferguson),' if they did something wrong. Forget the goal (against Stoke), which was really important for us it's obvious, my defenders have to defend well. For 75 minutes they did an amazing job. Him (O'Shea) and Carlos (Cuellar) were one of the main parts in that."

Which leads us nicely to the next story, Carlos Cuellar reckons that no one at the club can be proud of the season just gone. Aye, what he said: “The main thing is we achieved our objective of staying up. I know the way we got it probably wasn’t the best, but that was the main thing over the last few games. But no one can be happy with the finishing position this year because of the quality we’ve got in the team. Everyone hoped to do much better than the performances we have done through the whole year. Of course, we had a few good games. But we have to work hard on our consistency. The quality of the squad is good, but that’s no excuse for our performances. We have to think about what we’ve done wrong during the year in the summer because we’ve done too many things badly. There’s been some good things, yes, but we have to try to improve and make sure we don’t repeat our mistakes next year. If we can come back stronger with the new manager, then we have to be ready to start again with new players. We have been missing some big players through injuries or suspensions. But in the last seven games, other than Aston Villa, there have been positives to take after we’ve been working very hard in training.”

Titus Bramble has confirmed that he’ll leave SAFC when his contract expires next month. He tweeted the following earlier today: “I’ve had a great three years and would like to thank every #SAFC fan for the support they have shown. The NE is a special place to play and will always be close to my heart. I wish the club and my teammates all the best for the future.”

Meanwhile, Connor Wickham is looking forward to next season already after having a brief run in the team towards the end of the season. “We shouldn’t be in that [finishing] position with the squad we’ve got. We shouldn’t be anywhere near that position so next season we’ll come back and we all know we’re going to move forward. Hopefully we’ll push on as a unit and become a stronger team next season. I just needed someone to give me the chance – injuries and suspensions have given me the opportunity to show what I can do. It’s unfortunate we’ve run out of games now but hopefully next season I can try and cement a place again.”

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Well there’s not really that much news around so far today, however the club are spinning the line via the local media that the player revolt, following Casino Gate, is not as bad as previously reported and in fact only two players, Phil Bardsley and Matt Kilgallon, have approached the Professional Footballers’ Association for guidance on the fines they’ve received from SAFC. PFA Chief Gordon Taylor had this to say on the matter: "We know Paolo as a player and a manager, and he is a bit volatile. But he knows, from when he was a player with the PFA, what we are about. We represented him then, the same as we also represent the players (now). One point he made was about Sunderland being able to do what they want - well they can't. There is a disciplinary procedure that is agreed. We obviously agree with discipline, but that has to be in line with the Football Association and the Premier League. From that point of view, there is a due process. It is not going to help matters blasting players in public, but that is what he has done, so we will deal with it. It is not always conducive to good player-management relations. He is his own man, but they have to abide by laid-down procedures and Sunderland, being a member of the Premier League, know that as well as anybody. We don't want to get into confrontation, but we have a job to do and we need the players to know that."

Elsewhere and German side Augsburg will need to cough up £2.5million if the want to keep Ji Dong-won next season. Last weekend the South Korean scored the goal which confirmed the Bavarian club’s top flight status, and the £2.5m price tag would suit SAFC who splashed out £2m on the player two seasons ago.

Meanwhile, Paolo Di Canio has been chatting about his summer transfer strategy. He said: “I know that
the club has a plan. And the picture is clear before me of how it will work. I am head coach, the others have to handle the financial situation. I have said to them we need this type of player, this type of quality, in this position or that position. So show me the players we can go and get and I will tell them ‘yes, this player is OK’, or ‘no this player is not’. When you talk about mentality, we have to make sure that when we bring in players, they are good professionals because they have to influence each other. The dressing room is their kingdom. I can put in the strict rules to help them to understand we have to behave in a different way, but we need to bring in six or seven players who know how to behave and have a professional ethic and then they can help each other. Otherwise, it's difficult. We need to bring in quality, particularly up front, because to win games you need to score. We don't score many goals."

In other news, last season saw Sunderland’s average home attendance rise by 4% to an average of 40,544, which is pretty amazing when you consider how shit the football was. Well done to the fans yet again, you gave 100%, the players on the other hand…

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Well the big news today is that The Professional Footballers' Association have had a go at PDC following a series of heavy club fines given out to players last week. PFA chief Taylor said: "He cannot be a law unto himself. We're aware of player unrest at some comments made publicly, and other situations. A number of players are involved. We're aware of Paolo Di Canio's comments - it's something we had to deal with [when the Italian was manager] at Swindon as well. Our rules for discipline are agreed with the Premier League and Football Association."

Meanwhile, Paolo Di Canio is looking for quality over quantity this summer when it comes to player recruitment: “I have to make sure the players we bring in are good professionals: “I wanted to bring in players who have very high professional standards so they can effect each other in a better way. Overall though we need to bring in quality – that is the most important thing – because it is quality which will improve us. We have a lot of good players at the club, but we need to bring in players who are technically very good and have genuine quality. We will need more attacking players in order to score more goals, and that is something we have to look at, but I want us to play open, attacking football. This is the sort of football I want to see with Sunderland. But to do that we have to work hard and we have to make many changes.”

Elsewhere, Adam Johnson reckons that his report card for this season should read Must Do Better: “It’s been the worst season of my career as a whole, I think. I actually haven’t been that bad on the stats side of things but performances haven’t been what I’ve wanted. If you go through goals and assists, I haven’t done that bad but performances have been sometimes. You look at yourself and you’re honest with yourself. I think in general everything hasn’t gone well. got to look forward to next season now. It’s all we can do. The gaffer is big on discipline and if it means us getting more wins, I’m all for it. There’s nothing worse than losing game after game after game after game all season. I haven’t been used to that in my career so it’s been difficult. As far as I’m aware I’ll be here. I’m looking forward to next season, I want to improve. Over the summer you never know, it’s always up to the manager. Time will tell what happens. It’s been poor. Very poor, I think. The table doesn’t lie. I think the only thing that we can say is that the only way is up for us now. We can’t get any lower to be honest. We survived and now next season all we can do is progress. That’s the positive way of looking at it.”

In other news, it looks like Titus Bramble is off to America to play out his days; we are also expecting Lee Cattermole and Phil Bardsley to be linked with moves to Hull City.

Meanwhile there is actually one successful Sunderland side and it’s our ladies’ team, who are headed to the Second Division of the Women’s Super League after winning the Premier League yet again. In the past they were refused entry to the higher tier of the women’s game, but not this time. Gemma Wilson explained: “Obviously, three years ago it was disappointing not to get in. Ourselves and a few other clubs felt we should have been included. In terms of playing ability, and the whole club as a whole, we thought we deserved to be there, but we respected the FA’s decision. We know now, it could be a blessing in disguise that we have had time to grow as a squad. It will be good to test ourselves now in Super League Two. And it means we can enjoy the game.”

Sunderland WFC manager Mick Mulhern added: “I’m absolutely delighted, the league was the only thing we really wanted to win – anything else was always a bonus. This season we’ve had an awful lot of injuries, particularly since Christmas. We’ve had a lot of key players out and we’ve dug in. That shows a sign of true champions when you can dig in as a squad and we’ve only lost one game in the league all season. Every team is coming here to beat us – it’s pretty much most teams’ cup final. I don’t mean to sound arrogant, but that’s the way it is when you’re a top team and I know that because we approach opponents when we play the top sides like a cup final. That’s difficult for the girls but we’ve responded well. It is[important to win the league], because you’re long-time champions – we’re champions and that’s the first thing they’re going to talk about next year when we go into that league as current champions. That’s fine, I’m happy with that – I’d rather be champions that runners-up. I’ve just spoke to the girls about the Leeds game because even though we might celebrate a little bit tonight – the real celebrations will be after next Sunday when we get the cup. It’s a bit hollow if you get the cup and you’ve just been beaten. I think we owe Leeds one as well; they beat us 4-1 [in the Premier League Cup semi-finals] but we had five top players missing that day, including my centre-forwards, so they didn’t see the true Sunderland. Hopefully they will this weekend.”

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Given the excitement of ‘Agueroooo’ on the last day of last season, and the post Euro 2012 and Olympics blues, the 2012-2013 Premier League season was a warm welcome to every football fan, but did it disappointed? The title was decided long before the last day and relegation worries were eased for Villa and ourselves in the penultimate game. But why did we have to rely on Arsenal beating Wigan to seal our Premier League fate?

After signing Johnson and Fletcher, the anticipation for the season was high. This was the beginning of O’Neill’s era, though his honeymoon period was arguably already over, he was still the man every Sunderland fan wanted running our club. The season got off to a good start with a point away to Arsenal. But our game plan seemed to be trying to go one nil up and then sitting back and inevitably drawing 1-1. Though Johnson initially disappointed, Fletcher was proving critics he was worthy of the £12million we paid for him with some decent finishes. After a shaky few months, we began to pick up points over the festive period with wins over Reading, Southampton, Man City, West Ham and Wigan. But after the game away to Wigan, the football became unbearably boring, going to the match became a chore, and a pessimistic mentality set in.

Losing away to QPR the way we did and failing to get a win amongst games like Swansea, Fulham and Norwich at home left us questioning O’Neill’s tactics and motivational ability. His subs were baffling at times and his habit of only naming six subs to make a point of how thin our squad is was frustrating at times. Going the majority of the season without Cattermole didn’t help and then losing Fletcher left a lot of fans fearing relegation.

After the Man United defeat, Short had evidently seen enough negative football and showed Martin O’Neill the door. Though we needed a change, the timing of the decision was odd? Why after marginally losing to the best team in the league? Why not after a 1-1 draw at home to ten-man Norwich? It was certainly the first time I had questioned Short. A lot of journalists pointed out he was ‘an American with no prior knowledge of football’. Di Canio was drafted in to save us. After hearing of some of previous antics, for example subbing ‘keeper Wes Foderingham after 20 minutes because his body language wasn’t right, or the time he sat on the pitch and refused to play on, I was anxious but excited.

His work ethic was something we needed, his passion was vital to us staying in the league and his strict regime was just what the players needed. The noticeable difference in our play against Chelsea in his first game was reassuring but no-one expected what would happen in the next game. The most important Tyne-Wear Derby in years was upon us. Our record against them at SJP in previous years was dire and even after going one nil up, especially given the amount of late goals in the previous games, I was still nervous. even when we were leading 2-0 I dare to start to believe we could actually win it, but three nil? Di Canio had put every Sunderland fan in dream world. A three nil win, away to our rivals, with three wonder goals, to drag us further away from the drop, magnificent.

Then, the next game, our bogey team; Everton. A well deserved, hard fought out win. Albeit with its shaky moments, like that ridiculous indirect free kick, we looked like a different team under Paolo. Although the games that followed including a thrashing from Villa and two home draws AGAINST Stoke and Southampton weren’t that convincing, Wigan’s loss to Arsenal meant that the Italian had done his job and we were safe.

PDC’S threats to cut the player’s holidays short if we didn’t perform against Spurs worked and we can feel aggrieved by not nicking a point, but the fact is we’re safe. And Di Canio promises a revolution, stating he wants 12-13 new players, music to my ears! Though this a season most of us want to erase from the memory, there have been a few positives, Mignolet has matured into arguably the best keeper in the league and Danny Rose looks like a great little player, a great little player who we can hopefully sign permanently. In the general Premier League season, it was sad to say goodbye to Sir Alex in his retirement, the greatest manager football has seen but whilst United can kick on in their new era under Moyes, let’s kick on in our new era under the passionate, flamboyant Paolo Di Canio.

Bigger and better things? Dare to dream.

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Paolo Di Canio reckons that Ellis Short’s will support his efforts to eradicate the booze culture at SAFC : “It is not Ellis Short’s fault that we have this situation. But we have to change it completely. Unless I get his full backing it will be difficult, but I think he will give me his full support. Regarding the casino. Do we want our   young  players to laugh at what they saw on the website. Maybe they would think it was fantastic – he’s like a gangster, yes? No. We must not close our eyes, otherwise things will not change. Drinking alcohol is normal and I don’t want to change the culture because I love England. But there is a time and a place and professional footballers have to behave well. We have problems and what we discovered this week is only one aspect of a lot of things that have not been right. I go mad at these things. What has happened to Bardsley is in the past for me. I fine players, I fined seven   players  and that is how it should be. I was guilty of speeding recently and I was fined and that was OK because I was guilty and there has to be discipline, you have to accept responsibility. But just on the morning of the Spurs game I fined a player – not involved with the squad – for deciding that he couldn’t do training because he had food poisoning. We couldn’t get in touch with him to get a doctor’s opinion – his phone was switched off – so he will be fined. Players are late for meetings at a club which has spent millions and millions on them. This is not acceptable. One player was 20 minutes later, a few others were a few minutes late but didn’t seem bothered about that. This has to change and now we will be more strict. We have to improve our professionalism. We have to respect the dignity of the club.”

Meanwhile, Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas is playing hard ball over Danny Rose’s future: “At the moment, Danny goes to the Under-21 Championship with England and will then return to our squad. He has had a great season in Sunderland. We are aware of it. He’s a player we have to consider. There are decisions to be made at this club in the summer. We have to look to build, but we are also aware that we have to hold on to good players to improve as a club.”

PDC reckons we did OK at Spurs, considering the players he had available: “I just wanted to see a little more attacking quality from us. In terms of discipline, desire, commitment, I can have no complaints. My players, they gave everything, so I told them afterwards to remember it was only Gareth Bale that was the difference – you have to appreciate a   goal   of that quality. My frustration comes from the fact we did not have the team to cause more problems to the opposition. Coming here with only 11 adult players and six kids on the bench – it was never going to be enough. We did very, very well in some areas, but I wanted to damage Spurs more than we did and I thought, with a bit more quality, we might well have done that. But I have to say that, overall, I can only be happy that we worked so hard and almost got a point.”

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Sunderland were beaten 1-0 by a Spurs side battling for a place in the Champions League. With a bench full of toddlers and David Vaughan being sent off in the second half, Sunderland eventually crumbled to the 'genius' of Gareth Bale late in the match. I think we can all agree that this is a season we'll be glad to see the back of. PDC had this to say afterwards: “We’re obviously disappointed with the result but the lads have done a very good job. They gave everything in terms of commitment and desire but we’re still going back with zero points from the game. Gareth Bale made the difference once again for Tottenham with a great piece of play. I’m very happy with the performance; it was disciplined and we didn’t lose our brains. Sometimes in final games the players are too relaxed and thinking about their holidays, but that was not the case today. Spurs had to work hard to get their three points. The team did well considering players like Jack Colback and Sebastian Larsson weren’t in their normal positions. A big thank you to the fans. They sang all the way through the game and I loved seeing them in their section of the stadium in their red and white shirts. I wish we could have got a point for them to have something to celebrate. Unfortunately that didn’t happen, but the players wore the shirt and played the best way they could today.”

It looks like Phil Bardsley has played his last match for Sunderland after being dropped today following a photo being published on his Instagram of him lying on the floor of a casino, covered in a large number of £50 notes. PDC said: "I saw the picture on a website and moments later he was out of my squad. How can I play a player that probably is blurry for three, four days after what's happened? I want to deliver a very clear message: there is no excuse to behave like he did. They went out because Wigan lost the game and we stay up. I could understand it if we had won the Champions League or maybe the FA Cup. We have to respect the dignity of the club, and the fans. I thought that at Swindon... arrogant, ignorant footballers because they've not had many chances to stay at the top level. I have to tell you unfortunately I found a worse environment in terms of discipline in this club. This is what I've found in the last few weeks so we have to change completely. Some player that couldn't involve (himself) in my squad today for a different reason decided: I don't train today. They make that diagnosis. He didn't go to the Academy of Light because he said 'yesterday I had poisoned food'. Sorry. The doctor tried to contact him. His phone was switched off for three hours. This is the situation at Sunderland. Maybe I tell you this and tonight they sack me? I don't know but if you want to change something you have to follow me. These players will not be here next year. Not under me. The owner and I are going to sit at the table and go through but he knows many things. I spoke to him before by telephone and he told me we are going to change many things. This is what he told me before. (He said) 'Relax, don't worry because we are going to change many things' so it sounds like he supports me completely. We will see in the future. The next few days we will be together. Previously some people organised during the week to go from London to Hawaii, Miami... They were thinking about organising their bags, four or five of them were talking about going together with their wives and girlfriends. Not possible. Today we fly back to Sunderland, our city, as a team. We stay tomorrow together for a sponsors event, then they can go on holiday."

For a full Spurs Match Report click here

In other news, Paolo Di Canio isn't a man who is afraid of blowing his own trumpet, and has admitted that he believes he is Sunderland's saviour, preventing them from sure relegation. Asked if he thinks we would have went down without him he said: '"I think yes. I have to be honest. The environment was down. In my opinion, six games ago this team was down. Some people said I would be too hard and would stress the players but we have recovered the mental energy. Stephane Sessegnon, one goal in six games. Under me two goals in four games. Improvement. Under me, 1.3 points per game instead of one point per game. We would have finished top 10. Improvement. Eight points in six games without a striker. With Steven Fletcher, the top scorer injured. [Skipper Lee] Cattermole out for a long time. This is part of the job. I am sure about myself. If we did what we did in last few weeks without many options and changing a few things and if I have a chance to build my team in the way I want to see my team play with my players I'm sure it will be a magic combination. I'm sure with me, my staff, this environment the fans there are all the important ingredients there to have a fantastic season. Under me it will be different for sure. Maybe in another year you think you can point the finger and say he said that; it's never going to happen. But I'm fully confident we can write a different story here."

After Roberto Mancini was sacked by Man City, many have speculated that his strict approach to management upset the dressing room. PDC is also known for ruling with an iron fist, and our manager was asked whether recent events have made him reconsider his approach: "It's easy to speculate in these moments, but I don't agree completely (that discipline saw Mancini dismissed). It's not easy when you've got big egos like (Carlos) Tevez. It's difficult when you have seven hot-head players. With Mancini he found a simple difficulty. He had seven top hot-head footballers. One or two you can handle, but not five, six, seven. Also the players they are piranhas. They smell if you are weak. They were far from Man United, they went out of the Champions League and Mancini started something political with the board. The players know. They saw a fault. It is easy for them to say now we relax. For modern footballers, it is easy. It is tough to find devotion for the manager in the modern generation. Respect is simple, but devotion is difficult. If they think you are weak, it will change the dynamic. We have to push to the maximum because we need to change the mentality. When I came to England, three players had hernias. Why can't you stay one hour before training (on core strengthening)? That is your job. Otherwise you will spend three months out. You only play to 60 per cent of your capability because if you push too much you will hurt. I wasn't an incredible athlete, but I looked after my body. At 38, I qualified for the Europa League."

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