Sunderland Return To The Promised Land

02/07/2025 14:01 Share

Sunderland Return To The Promised Land

Few would have tipped Sunderland as contenders for promotion at the start of the EFL Championship season, but a stunning campaign for the Black Cats resulted in a return to the Premier League for the first time since 2017.

The Vertu-backed side had gone into the campaign on the back of a disappointing 16^th place finish the previous season, but with a new manager at the helm, the Club exceeded all expectations to come through the play-offs and earn a place back in the top flight.

A New Name:

Three different people had taken control of the Club over the course of the 2023-24 season, with Mike Doods ending the campaign in interim charge after the departure of both Tony Mowbray and then Michael Beale.

Pre-season saw the arrival of Frenchman Regis Le Bris, who had previously taken control of Ligue 1 side Lorient but was largely unknown on English soil. A strong start saw Le Bris named Manager of the Month for August and his side would remain in the top four throughout the season to secure a play-off spot.

All About Youth:

A number of teams in the Championship were able to count on Premier League experience within their squads going into the season – with the likes of Leeds United, Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton Town having squads packed with players who had played on the top flight.

Sunderland by contrast went in to the new season with a young squad featuring just three players who had appeared in the Premier League – with Chris Mepham the only one to have more than 15 appearances.

The youngsters would more than step up to the plate, with the likes of Chris Rigg (18), Jobe Bellingham (19) and Tommy Watson (19) playing a key role in the seasonal success.

In fact, Sunderland’s starting XI would have the lowest average age across the division.

Support:

As ever, Sunderland were cheered on by huge crowds throughout the season as fans packed into the Stadium of Light in order to cheer on their team – with an average of 40,494 for each home game being larger than twelve sides in the Premier League.

In total, the top 21 highest attended games within the division would come at the Stadium of Light, with the best attended game anywhere else coming at Elland Road in Leeds – for the visit of Sunderland.

The Late, LATE Show:

With a place in the play-offs having been secured, Sunderland endured a rough run of results to end the season with five successive defeats; putting full focus onto the three games that would decide if they gained a place back in the Premier League.

Having taken victory in the opening leg of the semi-final away at Coventry City thanks to an 88^th minute goal from Eliezer Mayenda, it looked like the tie would go to penalty kicks when Coventry led deep into extra time at the Stadium of Light.

However, with two minutes of stoppage time played at the end of the 120, Dan Ballard rose highest at a corner to plant a header into the net and secure a place at Wembley against Sheffield United for the third promotion place.

The Blades led the final and had the upper hand before Mayenda drew the Black Cats level, and with extra time looming, Watson – playing his final game for the club before a summer move to Brighton – curled a low shot into the corner to win the game and a spot in the top flight.