Former Sunderland striker Darren Bent believes the expectation on the Black Cats is 'crippling', as they push to get out of League One at the third time of asking.
Bent was speaking to Chronicle Live ahead of the return of the EFL on Quest highlights show this Saturday, expressing his view that the longer you're in the third-tier, the harder it is to climb out of.
Sunderland lost in the play-off final to Charlton two seasons ago, their first campaign in League One, and missed out on the playoff spots last term when the season was curtailed prematurely due to the coronavirus crisis.
While Sunderland are once again considered among the favourites to secure a spot in the Championship next season, Bent believes that the expectation is weighing on the club and has caused complications.
EFL on Quest returns this Saturday at 9pm and throughout the season on Wednesdays at 10.30pm for mid-week fixtures. Stream live and catch-up on dplay
“I’m a firm believer that League One is as hard as the Championship, it’s such a tough league. It kind of kills you in a bit in the way that the longer you stay down there, the harder it is to get out. I was there in the playoff final when they lost to Charlton and it’s difficult for them," he said.
“The thing that cripples Sunderland more than anything is the expectation because the expectation is that they’re a Premier League club. You go to the stadium and the training ground, you see the facilities, and they are a Premier League football club, it wasn’t that long ago that they were.
“But what cripples them every season is the supporter’s expectations, people around the football league’s expectation, the documentaries on Netflix. All these different things are on top of the football club and it makes it extremely hard to breathe.
“When you’re in a place like the North East where all they do is eat, sleep and breathe football, it’s such a hard place to get out of. They need to somehow find a way to get out of the division, put a run together, find a bit of form and go from there.
“But honestly, it’s such a hard league to get out of. I hope Sunderland do it but it’s going to be difficult again.”
