REDEMPTION SONG

There’s a brief moment when the safety harness locks on the roller coaster and you question your life choices, but by then it’s too late. Even before that first climb, rails clicking away as you take that slow ascent to what could be an adrenaline fuelled joy ride or a gut wrenching misery. And so we wait for our first game back in the Premier League, the safety harness is locked and the rails are clicking. If we wind back over the past 8 years though, it’s hard to find a similar theme park analogy for our experiences and for those brave souls who stuck with it and kept coming back for another punch in the face. It was far from Alton Towers; perhaps more Fawlty Towers. The delight of visiting Accrington lost its sparkle as the mud of despair gripped around our ankles in League One and contrived rivalries sprung up with teams that viewed us as the wounded giant there for the taking. Like King Kong swatting aeroplanes on the Empire State Building. And yet here we are.

Our hiatus from the Premier League has not all been doom and gloom; there have been some really great moments and we did have a fair bit of fun; but I’d rather not do it again. That doesn’t mean we should expect to stay up; the imbalance in financing between the Premier League and the rest of English football is a scandal and is in grave danger of creating a closed shop. The fact that we have been able to spend as much as we have this summer is a direct result of having newly-won wealth and the nostalgic romantics amongst you will notice the imbalance more keenly as we spend hundreds of millions whilst Morecambe, who we narrowly beat on the final day of our final season in League One, stare at the precipice of oblivion with fans and staff on the verge of seeing their club disappear. We went on to play Sheffield Wednesday in the play-off semi-final and now we see that great elder statesman of English football in disarray too. It’s hard to have sympathy for Premier League clubs saying that PSR rules are stopping them from blowing loads of cash really. Of course the problems at other clubs should not stop us enjoying our moment, but it is worth pausing for thought every now and again.

Digressions aside, we sit on the brink of the most exciting kick off we have had at the Stadium of Light for many a year. I’d say this one is right up there with our first Premier League kick off at the Stadium of Light although that one is slightly overshadowed by the fact it wasn’t our first game of the season and we had earlier been welcomed to the Premier League with a 4-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge. This one is fresh and comes without the preceding absence. The journey to that point wasn’t the same. Writers often create a redemption arc for characters; it feels like this is our redemption arc. We have toiled and endured and now we can taste the fruits of our success. Our signings have pitched the excitement even higher. During one of our League One seasons we confounded pretty much everyone by reaching the quarter finals of the League Cup, only to be turned over 5-1 by Arsenal. A certain Granit Xhaka came on as a sub to take on the might of Burge, Winchester and Flanagan; he now starts for Sunderland. That was less than four years ago. The transformation in the squad from that point to where we are now is nothing but jawdropping.

The transformation is not just on the pitch either, but off it too. Concourses redesigned, tunnel fit for the Premier League, even the Louise Wanless media room has been hauled into the modern era. Credit has to be given to everyone who has worked behind the scenes but especially Kristjaan Speakman and David Bruce. Those two can be heralded as catalysts for the changes we have witnessed at Sunderland and if we are quick to criticise where mistakes are made at Sunderland we should be equally quick to recognise achievement. I have seen our recruitment described as “scattergun” by rivals on social media. Those using that expression are clearly blind to the way our recruitment operates. There is absolutely method in who we sign and there will be lists upon lists for every position. I doubt Speakman has slept much this summer and I’m pretty sure his air miles account must be pretty healthy too. The piece that was missing was that connection with the fans; Bruce has helped the club turn that corner. In the past, the fans have felt secondary to the aim of making the club profitable whereas now things seem a lot different and, while things might cost a bit more, at least we might feel that we’re getting something for that extra cost.

The thing with a redemption arc is that it usually signals the end of the story just as a roller coaster slows to a finish. This is football though and we know that it doesn’t end. A season ends but we fans and our club just do it all again next season. What feels different this time is that we’re seeing progression. Even if we were to be relegated (we won’t, trust me) we would be in a very strong position and whilst I don’t profess to be a financial expert I don’t think we have to worry about the financial implications of relegation either. There will be relegation clauses in the contracts which is something we neglected to take care of when we were up here last time. On the playing side we would be joining that bunch of teams who are still able to outspend Championship clubs and would return a lot quicker; but that’s plan B. Plan A is to consolidate and move forwards, always moving forwards. Mark my words, this club is now ambitious and we’re doing things the right way. If you want proof of that, ask Granit Xhaka. If he can believe in it then we all should.

Enjoy the season, and as always, FTM.