Sunderland head coach Régis Le Bris is soaked with champagne as the team celebrate in the dressing room
Former Southampton boss Russell Martin pinpointed Sunderland’s energy levels as being key in their come-from-behind victory over Sheffield United to win promotion back to the Premier League.
Ending an eight-year wait, Regis Le Bris’ side left it late once again, as they took their ‘Til the End mantra for the play-offs very literally once again. Adding to Eliezer Mayenda’s equaliser, Tommy Watson fired home the goal that sent Sunderland to the top flight in the 95th minute of the game.
Offering his verdict after on Sky Sports, Martin said: “It just came down to their energy. You saw it in the semi-final too. They just seemed to get stronger and stronger as the game went on, and that all comes down to their energy levels. They made good changes throughout the game.
“It was particularly impactful when [Enzo] Le Fee dropped back a little bit and [Wilson] Isidor came on. Sheffield United will be disappointed. They missed a big chance and from there the momentum seemed to swing. They didn’t manage to regain it after that.
"But credit to Sunderland, their energy was magnificent. You can see how much it means to every fan. It’s just an incredible moment for them.”
In many ways, the victory was one that typified this Sunderland side and their season overall. Falling behind in 25 minutes after a poor start at Wembley, they also had to overcome losing the influential Luke O’Nien to injury after just 70 seconds. To be able to do that, Martin’s co-analyst Jobi McAnuff listed three things this Sunderland side showed aplenty.
McAnuff said: “They had to overcome so much adversity. They lost their leader and one of their main players went off so early. They weren’t in the game for 75 minutes. They come up with a moment and then the whole mood shifted. You can’t do that without togetherness, you can’t do that without organisation and you can’t do that without belief.
“To see that in such a young squad, the job Regis Le Bris of is phenomenal. This shirt is a heavy shirt. When you go to the Stadium of Light you really feel the pressure and the atmosphere. You know how many fans follow this club.
“For this group of players to handle that as well, it’s just another achievement to add to the list. These boys will go down in history. They just don’t know when they’re beaten. That’s such a brilliant quality to have, and that is the reason why they’re there.”
Agreeing with McAnuff’s analysis, former Hull City promotion winner Curtis Davies added: “You did wonder with the way their season ended. But like Jobi said, the strength of this young team, to stick together and dig deep to get past Coventry, to then come here and be 1-0 down and be dominated for so much of the game.
“It’s ultimately all about moments in football though. Big moments in this one: Anthony Patterson made some big saves for Sunderland, and then obviously Tom Watson comes up with the goal.”