Former Sunderland midfielder Kevin Kilbane has heaped praise on ‘incredible’ Alex Neil and set the club lofty targets of Championship play-off football next season following their play-off final glory. Goals from Elliott Embleton and Ross Stewart earned the Black Cats a 2-0 win over Wycombe Wanderers and sparked wild celebrations inside Wembley.
It was Neil who decided to start 23-year-old Embleton in place of Jack Clarke, with the move paying instant dividends when the local lad burst through Wanderers’ midfield and fired a shot through David Stockdale. Ross Stewart drilled home the second with just over 10 minutes to go to secure Sunderland’s place in next season’s Championship.
The victory ends a four-year stay in England’s third-tier and also banishes the playoff hoodoo in which Sunderland had lost their last six attempts. And Kilbane described the Wembley win as ‘very special’ for Sunderland supporters.
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“Today was very special.” Kilbane said on Sky Sports News. “I think that Sunderland supporters, you could see what it meant to them. I think the players more so now are really in touch with those supporters. Great scenes, incredible scenes. The hairs on the back of your neck really stood up with that, it was a great moment for Sunderland.
“It seems like such a long time, four years out of the Championship, five years since Sunderland were a Premier League club. That's where the majority of fans see themselves, as a Premier League club. The stature of the club probably warrants that but you get nothing for free these days and Sunderland need to work hard to get back to that state, to get back to that level where they were at.
“[Neil] has done an incredible job. Sunderland have had such a turnover of managers over the last 10-15 years and it’s just been the right fit at the right time. He had to make an impact very quickly coming in after Lee Johnson and he did that. He's gone to Sunderland and he has been the right fit and full credit to Alex Neil for getting Sunderland back in the Championship and he can move on from here now. “
Fans will no doubt be looking onto next season soon, with many looking up another division to the Premier League. It’s been five years since the Black Cats were in the top-tier and they will hope the momentum of promotion can propel them right back into contention for a place alongside football’s elite.
And Kilbane echoed those thoughts, claiming that Sunderland should be challenging for the top-six next season.
“Sunderland have been through so much pain and hurt particularly over the last five years.” He added. “Every year they’ve been in League One you’ve expected them to make a huge automatic promotion push. I’m sure there’ll be nobody taking anything for granted but the stature of the club… they are born to compete and you expect Sunderland to be right at the top of the Championship.
“It's not going to be easy. There is a lot of recruitment that needs to go in, a lot of involvement from a lot of people that needs to go in. I expect Sunderland to be certainly top-half come Christmas time and if they are there, I expect them to be making a playoff push and hopefully to be somewhere around top half top six position.”
For now, both Sunderland fans and players will be enjoying the night and an end to play-off heartbreak.
