It said much about the stature of the two clubs facing each other on Saturday that, in the wake of Bolton's fourth win in five games, all the media wanted to ask the Wanderers' manager about was what he thought of Sunderland's plight.

Gary Megson had just steered his side into seventh place in the Premier League on the back of 12 points from the last 15 and his third away win in succession.

But, after a couple of half-hearted questions about Bolton's display had trailed off, Megson chuckled: "Is that it? Are we done?

"If we lose, there's no end of questions, but if we win, there's hardly anything to ask."

Well, the Press were curious to know whether Megson thought Roy Keane was still the right man for the job at Sunderland.

"I think he is," said the man dubbed "the ginger Mourinho" by Bolton fans.

"Sunderland were down towards the lower reaches of the Championship when he took over and now they're competing strongly in the Premier League with plenty of big names in their side.

"But I don't think it is just a case of their progress up the league that is important – it is the way Sunderland are now viewed generally.

"They are viewed in a very positive, respectful light and most of that is down to him coming to the club.

"He's a good manager who knows football inside out and he'll respond to this setback in the right manner, I'm sure.

"He is very important to the revival in Sunderland Football Club – because there's no getting away from the fact that it's a great stadium with great supporters and, bizarrely, I think everyone looks forward to coming here to play – their fans are up there with Newcastle's and that is a big, big positive for them.

"Roy's been in charge for 100 games and he's done wonders for them and all they need to do now is to win two or three games, like we've done, and their season will have a completely different complexion.

"The bottom line, though, is that you have to win games."

The experienced Megson – 545 games as a manager compared to Keane's 100 – was prepared to offer advice to his opposite number about the relegation zone predicament he finds himself in, but he was the first to agree that there was no magic mirrors or secret tricks to Premier League progress.

He said: "All you can do is trust what you've got and keep working hard and if you can get that focus, it tends to change, even though there's no guarantees.

"As soon as you drop into that bottom three, people around your club tend to view you differently, but it's important to keep your nerve – particularly this season when it's so close.

"The good thing from Sunderland's point of view is that they are not in an exclusive club of one – they're one of maybe 15 teams in this division who are in the same boat, who are facing a prospective relegation battle.

"I took the time to look at how things stood at this stage last season and what was obvious was how close this season is, in terms of the points difference between teams, compared to last year.

"Last year there was a massive difference between the teams at the very bottom and the teams just above them, a big difference between the top few teams and the rest.

"But this time it is more compressed than I have ever known it in the Premier League, more compressed than I've ever known it in any league.

"All you need is a decent run – and a decent run can be just two wins – and you go shooting up the league. No-one wants to be in the bottom three, but the only time it is crisis is when you're in the bottom three on the last day of the season.

"You need to have belief in yourselves and a lot of it is about positive mental attitude – is your glass half-full or half-empty? – are you three points from bottom or six points from top?

"It's that sort of positive attitude you need."