Former Premier League winning captain Tim Sherwood insists “everyone wants to see Sunderland back in the Premier League.”
A top-flight winner with Blackburn Rovers back in 1995, the 56-year-old reckons the youth in the team can go into games without fear and use their natural exuberance to their advantage. And he believes that naivety and energy can give Regis Le Bris' side an advantage in the play-offs.
Speaking to OLBG Sherwood said: “The young players at Sunderland might feel the pressure but at other times they are carefree and just get on with the job with not many scars of what’s happened previously.
“They’re only young boys and they’ve got what looks like a decent manager and they’re working very hard for him, playing some attacking football and have a great stadium with magnificent support.”
He added: “Everyone wants to see Sunderland back in the Premier League. It’s been a long time now. But it’s just unfortunate they got Leeds and Sheffield United ahead of them and Burnley with Scott Parker arriving there and doing what he’s been doing with the clean sheets and the solidness of their play.
“It’s been very difficult, but I think Sunderland will be a real threat in the playoffs. I really believe that.
“Having said that, they might come up against one of the three favourites which could be Burnley, which would be very interesting to see.”
Sherwood played close to 250 games for Rovers having signed from Norwich City. He went on to play for Spurs, Portsmouth and Coventry City while he collected three England caps along the way.
