Sunderland manager Chris Coleman is confident that the club can return to the Championship at the first time of asking after they were relegated this weekend.

The Black Cats lost a remarkable game to fellow strugglers Burton Albion, with the away side scoring two late goals to snatch all three points and send the north east side down in the process.

When talking about the future of the club, Coleman was adamant that promotion in the first season could be achieved.

"There is only one objective now for Sunderland and that’s promotion. There’s no stabilising, it’s about bouncing straight back, bang," he told the Sunderland Echo.

"No disrespect to League One, I think we can still attract good enough players to make a difference and to get us heading in the right direction."

Even though he has previously stated his desire to stay on, the former Wales boss admitted he could guarantee anything because of the current ownership situation.

"I know what needs to be done, the question is who is here to do it. Until we know for certain who it is going to be, am I the manager, there’s the owner … until we know the plan, that’s only when we can start judging what we can do."

The Verdict

It was an awful weekend for Sunderland fans, however they will have expected relegation for a while now.

Nevertheless, it will still hurt but the bigger problem is the ownership situation, which Coleman also recognises.

Given that, it's hard to say they can bounce back immediately although Coleman clearly thinks he is capable of turning them around if given the chance.

Thoughts, Sunderland fans? Let us know in the comments below.