Quinn 'thrilled' with Sbragia

Sunderland chairman Niall Quinn has predicted manager Ricky Sbragia will remain in charge at the Stadium of Light beyond his current 18-month contract.

The 52-year-old has fully rewarded Quinn’s faith in him by steadily dragging the Black Cats away from relegation trouble since being asked to step into the gap left by Roy Keane in December.

Answering fans’ questions on SAFC TV, Quinn said: “Everyone is thrilled with the way it’s working out.

“Ricky has put his own stamp on it, he’s working hard and he has a great approach to the job. Results have been good and the team is playing better.

“Ricky has signed a kind of half-way house contract, 18 months, to give him a feel of it, for both sides to be happy with where we are going.

“But I would envisage him being here a lot longer.”

Sunderland were in danger of slipping into the fight for Barclays Premier League survival when Keane ended his stay on Wearside in the wake of a 4-1 home defeat by Bolton on November 29, a fifth reverse in six league matches.

Sbragia steadied the ship almost immediately, seeing his side come within minutes of an unlikely point at Manchester United in his first game in charge before Nemanja Vidic snatched victory at the death, and then guiding them to successive wins over West Brom and Hull.

It has not all been plain sailing since, but a run of just one defeat in their last six league games, culminating in a battling 0-0 draw at Arsenal on Saturday, has eased the Wearsiders eight points clear of the bottom three.

Under their new manager, they have taken 16 points from a possible 33, and a continuation of that form over their remaining 12 fixtures would surely see them consolidate their mid-table position.

Quinn’s backing comes just days after Keane used his first interview since leaving the Stadium of Light to criticise the influence of major shareholder Ellis Short and the chairman’s concern at the lack of smiles on players’ faces.

However, while Sbragia’s approach is perhaps more relaxed than that of his predecessor, he had no qualms about moving on Pascal Chimbonda and El-Hadji Diouf, who had run into disciplinary trouble under the Irishman.