Max Power has backed Sunderland to secure promotion - as long as they rectify their form at the Stadium of Light.

The Black Cats are currently on a six-match winless run at home in the league - a sequence that stretches all the way back to November when they beat Ipswich Town 2-1.

As a result the Wearsiders find themselves in ninth position in League One and with plenty of work still to do if they're to finish in the top six - let alone the top two.

Addressing their form at the Stadium Of Light would go a long way to getting them back on track, and according to versatile midfielder Power, they have all of the ability needed to get themselves back on track.

Quiz: Have any of these 22 players ever been in Sunderland’s academy?

 

As quoted by the Northern Echo, Power said: “I’m always in a positive mind-frame, and I still think we’ve got a real good chance of getting out of the division, but we really need to get on top of this home form and start putting in those performances that we’ve been putting in away from home.

“We want to build momentum, and you look at the division and it’s still wide open. But we know the home form is an issue at this moment in time. We've not won enough games.

“In terms of moving forward, I think there’s enough players in that dressing room with enough experience, good players, a good mix of youth - you've seen the impact Jack Diamond has had - and we've got a good mixture of everything, in my opinion.”

The Verdict

It's a familiar story for Sunderland this season.

Despite hopes of securing promotion they find themselves in the chasing pack and with a lot of work to do if they're to secure promotion.

Lee Johnson will be hoping to enjoy a good run in the coming weeks but there's little doubt that the team will need to show real improvement if they're to become genuine candidates to go up.