Sunderland are Premier League again and they deserve it. They earned the right thanks to a season of hard toil and nerveless endeavour. They sealed the deal by staring down more experienced opponents in this playoff final, expressing an appetite for victory that would not be quenched. Two goals of top-flight quality got them over the line, and delirious communion with their supporters at the final whistle sealed a small moment in history.
They don’t talk much about the romance of the playoffs, they’re just too brutal for that. A year’s work can be overturned in an instant. A collective loss of form, an individual lack of concentration, and years of planning and ambition can be set on fire. The playoffs break hearts more than they make dreams come true and, often, celebrations at Wembley are followed by tears just a year later.
