Cattermole: Allardyce can lead Sunderland to success

Lee Cattermole is confident in Sam Allardyce’s ability to manage Sunderland to Premier League safety this season.

Allardyce has helped improve Sunderland’s fortunes since taking over the club in October, but the club still finds themselves stuck in the relegation zone, four points from safety.

Three of Sunderland’s four Premier League wins this season have come under Allardyce, and Cattermole believes the former West Ham United and Newcastle United manager has what it takes to lead Sunderland back up the table.

“We’ve brought in the new manager and he has built things at West Ham. If we can stay up with what, in theory is not really his squad – and the club invest – then there is no better person to help us,” Cattermole told the Daily Mail.

“So that’s something we are aiming to do. We need to improve, we need to get better and climb the table.”

A win against fellow relegation-threatened outfit Swansea on Wednesday – who are four points above Sunderland – will provide a fantastic opportunity to do just that.

Sunderland were knocked out of the FA Cup by Arsenal, despite taking a 1-0 lead at the Emirates, and will now be able to focus exclusively on their Premier League survival run.