Sunderland had an up-and-down campaign in which they were one of the best sides in the division in the middle third of the campaign but otherwise were quite poor and their 13th-place finish is no great surprise. Steve Bruce started the season under pressure on the back of a very poor finale of the previous campaign and a loss at home to Newcastle early on hardly helped matters. Then the matter of Asamoah Gyan leaving over the head of Bruce made it even tougher for the Black Cats who struggled to get going in the early weeks. Their only positive result in the first couple of months was an emphatic win over Stoke. Otherwise, the players seemed to be lacking motivation to play for Bruce and most of the performances were decidedly average. They had little luck too due to missed chances and a last-minute loss at home to Wigan in late November proved the final straw for owns Ellis Short who sacked Bruce with the Black Cats sitting just above the drop zone. Martin O'Neill was appointed and managed to inspire the team to a vital 2:1 win over Blackburn after scoring twice late in the game. That performance and result proved an absolute overdose of confidence and enthusiasm in the team and they revelled in the next two months under the guidance of O'Neill. A number of inspired performances saw a good run of one defeat and seven wins in nine league games, including a last-minute 1:0 win over Manchester City. The fans were now in dreamland as the threat of relegation vanished in almost no time. The big revelation was Irish winger James McClean whose direct running from the left wing was making opposite defenders shiver. Stephane Sessegnon's clever movement and superb interplay was the other highlight of that purple patch. Its peak came in February when Sunderland claimed a 2:0 win over Arsenal in the FA Cup that booked a last-eight clash against Everton. Having held on to a 1:1 draw at Goodison Park, Sunderland failed to raise their game in the replay and lost 2:0 at home with Wembley dreams ended in hugely deflating manner. O'Neill's men were bound to have a drop from then on and despite a great performance at Manchester City immediately after, when they were leading 3:1 and held on to become the only team in the league to claim a point at the Etihad Stadium, the results were quite poor in the last couple of months. They won none of the last eight league games and most of the feel-good factor has disappeared but the belief is still there that O'Neill can make a real force next season.
