Sunderland start their bid for play-off glory at Coventry City on Friday night

Sunderland have known for a while that their season would be ending in a play-off campaign. Almost from the moment Leeds United scored their second at Elland Road back in February, the top two has looked a distant prospect and seventh or below an even more unlikely outcome for the Black Cats.

It has led to a difficult and frustrating period for all involved, culminating in five losses in a row as Régis Le Bris rotated his side heavily. That decision was in part guided by Le Bris’s extensive research into play-off football and his club’s previous experiences in it, something the certainty over Sunderland’s top-six fate has given him time to conduct.

Speaking ahead of the first leg against Coventry City on Friday night, the Sunderland head coach outlined some of the priorities he has been working on behind the scenes over the last few weeks - and hinted that he may have a few tactical surprises up his sleeve for over the next week or so.

"I think probably the first idea was the availability of our players,” Le Bris said.

“Two years ago at Luton the backline wasn't the backline expected to face this kind of challenge. So this was our main idea and now, we have more or less a full squad. So I think this is a big positive for us.

"After that, the penalty shootout - it was clear that it would be important to us to train this part of the game. Especially for us as this season we have struggled, so we started to work on this around a month ago.

"Also the different elements of our gamestyle, just to become a little bit less predictable. I think after 46 games and a lot of video analysis, it's easy to understand what are the strengths and weaknesses of a team. So we wanted to open two or three different options, and a meeting on Wednesday morning was really important for this. Just a few subtle details that could make a difference."

Régis Le Bris backs his Sunderland players to deliver

While many are understandably concerned by Sunderland’s poor form heading into the play-offs, Le Bris insists that the time he and the players have had to plan and prepare can work to their advantage.

"Absolutely,” Le Bris said.

"It was not really a decision because of injuries, red cards and different elements but also because of our situation, we had the chance to manage it properly without rushing processes. For example, injured players . Now it is like jigsaw pieces, everything is ready because our players are available, they want to face this challenge. They have been frustrated which I think is a positive rather than being over confident. And they always need to be at the edge to play their best football and I think this is the perfect situation for them. They have this potential because they showed so many qualities this season. Now it's time to deliver - and I think they expect this.

"They are excited, ready to go, and at the same time with just the small dose of doubt, which is really useful to be competitive."

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