Gary Neville name-checks Sunderland alongside Leeds, Newcastle and Nott’m Forest as play-off decider looms | OneFootball

Sunderland face a big game against Wycombe Wanderers this weekend in a bid to gain promotion to the Championship.

Sunderland have been stuck in League One since the 2018/19 season after suffering consecutive relegations from the Premier League and Championship in the two seasons prior.

Alex Neil has done a brilliant job since coming to Sunderland in February, but the real test will be on Saturday to see whether they are able to gain promotion.

One person backing them is former Manchester United defender Gary Neville, who mentioned the Black Cats when speaking about the fall of Northern teams such as Sheffield United, Leeds United and Middlesbrough on Sky Sport’s Monday Night Football (via the Chronicle).

The pundit said: “The north of England doesn’t get as much investment as it should do, a lot of clubs in the south have been bought.

“We need a strong Newcastle United, Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Leeds, Sheffield Wednesday and Nottingham Forest. These different cities around the country, I’ve been saying it for many years, are really important to football in country.”

Comments like Neville’s will no doubt help motivate the players for Saturday’s play-off game as they feel they have the support and a point to prove that they deserve to be in a higher league.

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The Verdict:

Sunderland will definitely feel as though they deserve more than League One with the history they have on their side and, after the disappointment they have felt in recent years, they will be desperate to be the ones gaining promotion on Saturday.

However, despite the support that may be on their side, they cannot afford to underestimate Wycombe in this game as they have proved to be tough opponents throughout the play-offs so far.

You can see why Gary Neville is reminiscent of the classic northern teams in the Premier League and Sunderland will be hoping it’s them who can make it back up to the top flight eventually.

However, they can’t get ahead of themselves and must focus on the immediate task of promotion from League One for now.