Coleman vow: We can get out of trouble

Sunderland's fight against the Championship drop is giving Chris Coleman sleepless nights, but only because he still believes his squad has what it takes to get out of trouble.
Sunderland boss Chris Coleman. Picture by Frank ReidSunderland boss Chris Coleman. Picture by Frank Reid
Sunderland boss Chris Coleman. Picture by Frank Reid

Kind results elsewhere on Saturday means Sunderland remain just two points from safety, but 20th-placed Bolton Wanderers have a game in hand, while Birmingham City’s form surge has seen them move five points clear of the Black Cats.

Coleman has 16 games left to get Sunderland over the line and admits he is already yearning for the trip to Bristol City after this latest setback.

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He said: “Yeah, I won’t lie to you. As a manager, the number of good night’s sleep you have during a season are not many.

“The frustrating there here is if we were an absolute waste of time and I looked and thought we had no chance of getting out of this, I’d probably go and say to Martin, ‘Come on, let’s have a chat. I can’t, we haven’t got it, there’s not enough here.’

“But there is a chance for us to get out of it and that’s when you get sleepless nights, on the back of games like today.

“I’m no different to any other manager, we’re all the same. You fret, you worry, you stress. The feeling of defeat is awful and you feel it until the next game comes around and you can do something about it.”

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Coleman admits this one of the toughest defeats to take so far but again took solace in knowing the squad he is now working with are up for the fight. He said: “Yes, I think so. We had new faces, a good start for 25 minutes and the crowd were up for it. Even at a goal down, I still felt we could do something but then to concede again when we did, that’s a tough one to take.

“At least the players who are here now want to be here.

“We can all roll up our sleeves and say let’s crack on with it, we’re in a dogfight.

“We’ve got to be better than three other teams, that’s it, between now and the end of the season.”