“Everton have been criticised for their performance against Leicester and I think that will get a reaction from the players and Roberto here”.
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The Toon hero was placed in caretaker charge for the final games of the 2008-09 season when the Magpies last dropped into the second tier.
“It was pretty miraculous and there was no way I wanted to go to Watford [on Sunday] needing anything!”
“The next set of recruitment is crucial for the football club, so we are not cheering or doing a lap of honour for having avoided relegation”.
Allardyce was brought in in October to replace Dick Advocaat – and has gradually transformed the club, culminating in Wednesday’s win.
The Black Cats then struck a seismic blow in the battle for survival, defeating Norwich City 3-0 at Carrow Road on April 16, pushing their relegation odds out to even money.
Just four minutes later Kone volleyed home the second after Leighton Baines could only half-clear a Wahbi Khazri corner, and the defender’s second early in the second half effectively sealed the Black Cats’ survival.
Sunderland’s Jermain Defoe celebrates with manager Sam Allardyce after their win ensured they stay in the Premier League.
“We grew together, got better and better and we got the points we needed in the end”.
Norwich 4 (Redmond 15, Mbokani 18, 57, Cathcart 37-og) bt Watford 2 (Deeney 11, Ighalo 51).
“Obviously it’s a severe disappointment”, said Neil, the Norwich manager.
“We went through risky and hard situations and eventually got it in our own hands. We had it in our hands three, four, five games ago, but unfortunately we came up short”.
For manager Sam Allardyce it appeared especially sweet given his sacking by Newcastle in 2008.
Aston Villa have also been relegated to the Championship and are 17 points adrift at the bottom of the table.
Neither Newcastle nor Norwich is unfamiliar with the Championship.
Newcastle managing director issued an apology to fans after their relegation was confirmed on Wednesday, saying the club were “devastated” and “truly sorry”. The process of scrutinising what went wrong and planning for what is to come has already begun.
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Who cares how bad a team is during the season, if they hit form at the right time?
