From Accrington to Milan (maybe) – Sunderland’s journey sends vital message
Have you ever seen a Mackem in Milan? You may in a few months.
Very few, if any, games will top Sunderland’s 2-1 win over Chelsea at the Stadium of Light, given the magnitude of the reward.
This was a club that almost everyone away from Wearside, and even some on it, had written off before a ball was even kicked, tipped not only to suffer relegation, but to do so embarrassingly, with a record-low points tally. Yet, on a rather sunny afternoon that nobody inside the ground will ever forget, the Black Cats secured European football for the first time in 52 years.
Most supporters arrived at the red smoke-filled ground simply hoping there was still a chance of Conference League football by full-time. They left knowing they would witness their side playing in the Europa League.
It’s not even eight years to the day that Sunderland had a league encounter rained off against Accrington Stanley, in which I had a rather unpleasant 25-minute walk back to the car, which typifies the journey we have been on as fans.
English football should be thanking Sunderland for proving everyone wrong
Prior to this season, the last six promoted sides were also the six relegated sides, reinforcing the belief of many that the gap between the Championship and the Premier League had become insurmountable.
But in reality, the gulf in quality was not the issue; instead, it was the lacklustre attempts of those promoted clubs to consolidate themselves in the top flight.
| Premier League | Sunderland |
| Wins | 14 |
| Draws | 12 |
| Losses | 12 |
| Goals for | 42 |
| Goals against | 48 |
They entered the league trying to survive, rather than believing that they were where they belonged.
Sunderland changed that with their recruitment, not just this summer, but the past few, with two big sales in the form of Tommy Watson and Jobe Bellingham from a PSR perspective.
That laid the foundations for the season just passed, and showcased to other clubs outside of the top flight that anything is possible with the right strategies in place.
For those who have endured Sunderland’s darkest days, the moment the full-time whistle was sounded against Chelsea felt almost surreal.
Not because success arrived overnight, but because, for the first time in a very long time, and for the first time in my 25 years supporting this club, everything at Sunderland finally feels connected again.
What is next for Sunderland?
As Granit Xhaka said himself, this is only the start for Sunderland.
And that is arguably the most exciting part of all. This season and the success that has come from it were never viewed internally as a miracle run or a flash-in-the-pan moment to cling to; it was the first real step towards something far more special.
Fans from around England saw last summer what can happen when a clear plan is in place. Sunderland earned widespread praise not just for the calibre of players they brought in, which was unbelievable at the time, but also for the intelligence behind the deals.
They had identified talent from abroad before values skyrocketed with the likes of Noah Sadiki and Robin Roefs, building a squad not only with immediate quality, but also longer-term potential, all while refusing to abandon the basic principles that got them here in the first place.
Mackems can once again look ahead to the future with excitement instead of constant dread, confident that their club is moving in the right direction again.
And, if this season proved anything, which it certainly has, it is that Sunderland are no longer dreaming about the future. They are building it, and that is something to embrace.
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