IT feels like a cloud has lifted this week after the win against Wigan - but it will all mean nothing if we don’t back it up against Sunderland.

I think you’ve got to give some credit to Owen and his staff for getting the lads back in over the international break and really going back to basics.

They were doing double sessions to work on shape, and it paid off. We haven’t looked that solid in a long time, even though you’ve got to admit, Wigan were poor.

It’s a fresh start now but the lads have got to go and prove they are not a one hit wonder and get the job done at home.

The Wanderers fans have done their job since the start of the season. A couple of years ago, if we’d have been on the same run it would have felt like the end of the world. But nowadays it’s a different club. We’re all a lot closer.

Sunderland are struggling at the minute and it’s something we’ve got to take advantage of.

I like Steve Bruce and I don’t think they’ll still be down there at the end of the season. But if we’re going to get something on Saturday... here’s a few areas I think we should concentrate on....

1. Get the wingers in play. It’s okay saying that Chris Eagles and Martin Petrov go missing from games, but you have got to give them the ball.

Eagles was giving Wigan fits on Saturday, going outside, cutting inside, and was absolutely outstanding on the right.

Wingers are confidence players, sure, but it’s all about the type of areas they get possession. If you get the ball to Eagles and Petrov on a regular basis, they will deliver. They have that quality.

2. Stay solid at the back. David Wheater was really impressive against Arsenal before he got sent off, so I was delighted to see him come back in and play well at Wigan. He gets his head on things, he’s strong in the tackle and doesn’t hide away.

Dedryck Botaya looks like he is settling down as well and he gives us a bit going forward. He’s young, energetic and his positioning was great.

3. Streaky striker. What a confidence booster it was for David Ngog to get a goal, and get that weight off his shoulders nice and early. There’s nothing worse as a striker than people highlighting it’s been six games without a goal, then 12, then 18. It drives you crazy.

David has worked really hard in the last few weeks without much reward - but he took his goal really well and it would be great to see him get on a run now.

4. Push from midfield. Nobody gave a monkey’s whether it was Nigel Reo-Coker or Gary Caldwell who scored the first goal on Saturday - it was all about the run. He bust a gut to get into the penalty box and we need much more of that from him and Darren Pratley, who was also terrific.

In a 4-5-1, Nigel can sit and direct traffic, but in a 4-4-2 the onus is on him to push forward because the other guy can’t do that for 90 minutes on his own.

5. Owen knows his best team. It was a brave move to go back to 4-4-2 away from home. It gave out the right message to the players: “Your manager believes in you, have a go at them.”

Owen has made some big calls to drop Zat Knight, Fabrice Muamba and Gretar Steinsson, and it’s up to them now to prove in the reserves or training that they can get back in there.

But I like the look of the team he put out against Wigan and I think they can do a job at the Reebok.

YOU wonder whether they will ever get to the bottom of the Luis Suarez v Patrice Evra race row.

Unless there is a star witness they are about to call, or the referee knows more than he’s letting on, only two people know what went on in that game.

You can’t condone it, but I’m struggling to understand why Suarez would bother, as Liverpool were having much the better of the game in my eyes.

I very rarely heard any racist language on the pitch back in my day, even though it often came from the stands. It’s a very different world now, much for the better.

But I’ll hold my hands up - I would happily call someone a few choice names if it meant getting an advantage.

Imagine what sort of grief Wayne Rooney is getting right now. People know they can push his buttons.

That might be the case here. You’d just like to think that a line hasn’t been overstepped.

I DON’T know what they are putting in the water at these Premier League meetings, but there certainly seems a lot of crazy talk going round at the moment.

Getting rid of promotion and relegation to the top flight is a complete waste of time. It would kill the game.

There would be nothing to achieve for the lower league clubs, and there would be no reason to improve stadia if the route was blocked off.

It has been the making of this club. We are what we are because of the good times and the bad.

Yes, the people doing the asking are the foreign owners putting millions into their clubs. But if they get their way, it will end up sinking like the SPL.

It’s a closed shop up there, and while Celtic and Rangers get crowds of 50-60,000, they can’t get the players in because there is no life in the competition.