Paul Mitchell: Sunderland need more forward thinking on and off the pitch

No mid-table mediocrity for us - why would we want the season to be finished by February?

We also, however, don't have success. We don't have progress. We don't have a real long term vision.

It feels like the last five seasons, at least, has been to the wire, seat of the pants thrill rides - but the kind that make you feel sick at the end.

What we want is a good league run, a decent cup run and an opportunity to build.

What we have, though, is a Lego House that gets parts of it knocked away when things start to look good.

What I'm after is stability and more forward-thinking. Maybe Newcastle getting relegated may help, as we won't be seen as the poor relation.

Like it or not, that is what we are seen as, geographically speaking.

Anything north of Manchester is seen, from player point of view, as not really a glamour move and I think that has been a consideration in a number of players turning down the club.

I'd like us to stay up and actually have that mediocrity for a few seasons then build, build, build.

I just hope that the rate of building isn't the same that has blighted the Vaux site (almost 17 years and counting, folks). If it is, we are likely to slip and fall into the Championship.

At least we'd have a derby, though.

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