Sunderland followers of a sure classic could keep in mind two significantly no-nonsense but inspirational quotes from Kevin Ball following the Lads’ 1998/1999 Division One title-winning marketing campaign.
The primary was delivered on the pitch at Gigg Lane following the emphatic 2-5 victory over Bury that sealed our promotion again to the Premier League, with Ball declaring to ITV Tyne Tees’ Jeff Brown that “Sunderland would turn into a power now”.
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Weeks later, after the end-of-season bus parade had made its manner right down to the seafront, the midfielder stood on the balcony on the Seaburn Centre, hoisted the trophy aloft and easily stated “That is for each one man jack of you”.
The explanation I point out it is because as we proceed to replicate on the astonishing indisputable fact that as of proper now, we’re followers of a newly-qualified Europa League soccer membership, I believed there have been exceptional parallels between the sentiment behind Ball’s phrases over twenty 5 years in the past and people expressed by our present captain, Granit Xhaka, throughout Sunday’s wonderful post-match celebrations.
As I stood within the North West Nook after the whistle blew, with the gamers celebrating wildly and the fact of European qualification started to daybreak on everybody, it felt like being a part of a scene that we’ve all watched at different golf equipment however seldom skilled at Sunderland. No one leaving in case they missed one thing particular. A gaggle across the tunnel because the gamers’ re-arrival was awaited, and nothing to be heard however raucous cheering and singing because the get together acquired going.
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Shortly afterwards, following Régis Le Bris’ transient but noticeably animated speech to the crimson and white trustworthy (which solely added to the attraction of the person, for my part), it was the flip of our figurehead, our basic, and our captain to talk — and boy, did he seize the eye.
Merely put, Xhaka’s interview within the centre circle was fairly presumably probably the most inspiring I’ve ever heard from a Sunderland captain.
He’d ran himself to a standstill in a profitable trigger towards Chelsea, but appeared as recent as a daisy and spoke with the readability of a person about to kick off the season as an alternative of ending it; certainly, when he declared that “That is just the start”, it stirred the feelings as successfully as any of the victories or targets we’d witnessed throughout 2025/2026.
After we secured our prime flight standing with a scratchy draw at , I wrote an article thanking Xhaka for what he’d finished, on the time hoping but not really believing that European qualification was nonetheless a practical prospect.
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Skippering the Lads’ to mid-table safety on the first time of asking would’ve been spectacular sufficient, however main them into the Europa League by way of our league place for the primary time ever? That’s one thing completely different solely and I simply need to pay one other tribute to him.
What you get with Xhaka — in each aspect of his method to soccer — is the very embodiment of management.
Deeds first, phrases second. Make that problem, chase that seemingly misplaced trigger and ask questions later. OK, consistent with the methods of recent footballers, he’s energetic on social media and he clearly understands the dimensions of his affect, however that’s advantageous, as a result of it’s not performative and it’s not superficial.
As a substitute, he backs it up each time he takes to the pitch and the working relationship he’s solid with Le Bris, with captain and coach united behind a standard aim, is mightily spectacular.
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From to after which to Wearside, Xhaka could also be nearer to the tip of his profession than the start, however the reality he’s having fun with such a stellar run of kind on the banks of the Put on has been completely very important for the membership’s fortunes on our return to the highest flight.
Captaining Sunderland AFC isn’t the simplest function to fulfil, but Xhaka has carried himself with the aura and presence of somebody for whom the armband might’ve been customized fitted.
Not as soon as has he appeared overawed, uncomfortable or as if he’s not relished the problem of main this membership to new heights — one thing that was completed throughout 2025/2026, certainly.
Given how dismally our earlier Premier League marketing campaign had ended and the scars that previous failings had left, Sunderland basically wanted to learn to compete and in the end how one can win at this stage as soon as once more, and that comes right down to mentality.
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Boasting such a powerful strike price from our summer season signings — most of whom have contributed considerably — has undoubtedly helped with that, however how do you gauge a group’s resilience below stress, its skill to salvage outcomes from difficult positions, and its capability to final the course throughout a gruelling marketing campaign?
With a serial winner and world class midfielder on the coronary heart of the operation, it offers you a supreme likelihood of eking out greater than you even thought potential — and I don’t assume it’s incorrect to state that Xhaka has impressed his teammates as a lot as he’s impressed the supporters.
You’ll be able to search excessive and low however irrespective of how exhausting you attempt, you received’t discover a Sunderland fan with a foul phrase to say about him. And for a participant that’s been right here for lower than a yr, that illustrates the dimensions of the influence he’s made.
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His legacy at our membership has been cemented.
He’ll be a key participant throughout subsequent season’s European marketing campaign and he’ll stay a hero in these components lengthy after his taking part in days are over, however for the ultimate proof of simply how influential Xhaka has been, look no additional than the truth that he was just lately ranked primary on The Athletic’s checklist of all Premier League signings for 2025/2026 — above gamers who price 3 times as a lot, prime flight title winners and a mess of electrifying attackers.
“Not even a genius like Rayan Cherki has reworked a dressing room like Xhaka, in addition to bringing a brand new tradition to the membership,” learn the accompanying abstract.
That, for me, really sums it up.
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One participant can’t change the trajectory of a membership however he can play a significant function in doing so, and this Swiss talisman has finished that after which some. Within the eyes of the trendy technology of Sunderland followers that’ve been swept alongside on a wave of pleasure ever since he first pulled on the crimson and white stripes, he’s certainly as revered and revered as somebody like Raich Carter would’ve been a century in the past.
Can there be any larger reward? I believe not.