Sunderland Head Coach Régis Le Bris has spoken openly about his enjoyment of being in charge of the Black Cats this season, and made clear that anything is still possible for his team. Daniel Wales reports.
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00:00Sunderland have been one of the surprises of the football season in England under Reggie Slebrice.
00:06From the misery at the end of the previous campaign that saw the club finish a lowly 16th place in the championship table
00:12to what has been an incredibly memorable season for all associated with the club
00:17and one which could still get even better given the potential for promotion at the end of it
00:21it would be a fair assessment to say that those on Wearside will have enjoyed their football over the last few months.
00:28But what of the head coach himself? How much has he enjoyed the season and being in charge of the Black Cats?
00:34Even in moments of frustration this year Reggie Slebrice has remained focused on his staff and his players
00:40and delivering for the supporters both home and away.
00:43But has he allowed himself to appreciate what has been achieved so far
00:47and if results continue to go Sunderland's way, what could still yet be accomplished?
00:53As it would appear, Slebrice has found this campaign to be one of his most memorable in his career so far
01:01given the bond he has established with the club.
01:04This one was really special I think especially here in England and in this club.
01:12To summarise I should say that the connection with the club was really positive
01:21because in that stage of my career probably I wanted to be connected with my desire
01:29and how I want to coach, how I want to be connected with staff, club and players
01:37because sometimes you work with a group which doesn't fit exactly what you would like to do
01:48and as a head coach sometimes it's not possible to find this opportunity
01:54and it was the case here so for many reasons I really enjoyed this season so far.
01:59And with that in mind what would it mean to you personally and to all your staff
02:03to achieve something like promotion in a club like this?
02:06It's very rare in a career I think so we'll see because expectations are high I get that
02:17but at the same time we don't have to be carried away by negative or positive emotions.
02:23I think the consistency is really key and in that circumstances it's very important to stay focused on our game
02:32so we'll see at the end and if we deserve something we'll see and we'll be happy
02:38but we will work hard until the end I can say that.
02:43You say expectations are high there but is the self-belief in the club really high as well
02:47and the fact that you watched Leeds drop points last week it can happen
02:51so is the belief still there that not just playoffs but even something more could be possible?
02:56Yeah we are still positive and many things can happen
03:03so we have 11 games left to play with 33 points so it's massive we don't know we'll see.
03:15From the outside looking in the playoffs would appear to be the most likely route to promotion
03:20but is the top two still achievable?
03:22I think probably not I think when you look at especially the form that Leeds United have shown all season
03:28and then you look at the individual quality that I think Sheffield United and Burnley have got
03:32I think it's really difficult to imagine them having the kind of drop off that's needed
03:35and at the same time Sunderland haven't quite been consistent enough this season to really keep pace
03:40I think they've overachieved by a long way
03:42I think it's really hard to see a combination of Sunderland kind of going on the long winning run
03:46that they would need and the teams above them having the kind of dip
03:49so I think at this point I probably don't really see it happening
03:52but at the same time I don't think Sunderland should have any fear in the playoffs
03:56against any of these teams as we've seen this season
03:58so although I think the top two looks out of reach I think there's still plenty to be positive about in terms of promotion.
04:02It's been a brilliant year so far I think up until recently the home form was so good
04:07which was such a big improvement on last season that obviously has such an impact on the feel around the place
04:12I think that inevitably at this time of year you know the quality of football dips a bit
04:16because their fatigue kicks in but generally speaking I think the football's been really exciting this season.
04:21Few could have expected that Sunderland would have challenged in the way that they have done so far this season
04:26given just how they ended the previous campaign.
04:29It's a testament to them that they are still in the hunt.
04:32Next up is the visit of Cardiff to the Stadium of Light
04:35where Sunderland will attempt to keep the pressure on the three teams above them
04:38and hope to capitalise on any mistakes that they might make from now until the end of the season.