Sunderland need to learn lesson from Premier League trio after winning richest game in football

You can’t put a price on joy like this. Or the agony. Okay, so conservative estimates reckon promotion to the Premier League is worth £220million given that lovely little insurance policy called parachute payments.

And that would have been of particular interest to Sunderland owner Kyril Louis-Dreyfus as he watched on from Wembley’s Royal Box as Eliezer Mayenda and substitute Tommy Watson both scored goals in the last 14 minutes to send his club back to the big time.

The bankers at Macquarie, the Australian finance company that has been lending money to Sheffield United secured against future revenues, must have been rubbing their hands in anticipation for most of the afternoon when Tyrese Campbell fired the Blades into a first-half lead their dominance warranted.

But while the self-styled richest game in football will ultimately be measured in pound notes by the men in suits, for the northern hordes that traipsed down the M1 this was all about the glory. The raucous Roker roar that greeted both of Sunderland’s goals and the final whistle might have been heard all the way back on Wearside.

Sunderland will be playing Newcastle next season. And Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City. At the opposite end of the stadium, 30,000 Blades wouldn’t have appreciated the irony of how both of their Wembley and play-off curses had been extended by a club nicknamed the Black Cats.

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Last month marked the 100th anniversary of United’s last victory at the home of English football when they lifted the FA Cup. This was the 10th time they have found themselves in the end-of-season lottery that decides a third promotion place - and they are yet to win one.

The Yorkshire club finished 14 points clear of Sunderland in the Championship table. They thrashed Bristol City 6-0 in the semi-finals, while the Wearsiders needed Dan Ballard’s injury-time goal in extra-time to get past Coventry. When Campbell lifted United into a 16th-minute lead with a lovely finish from Gustavo Hamer’s pass, it appeared that this final was running true to form.

The Blades’ striker is the son of Kevin Campbell, the former Arsenal striker who passed away at the age of just 54 almost a year ago. His dad would have loved the lad’s finish. But when Harrison Burrows’ volley was ruled out for offside after a VAR check, Blades boss Chris Wilder might have feared there would be a twist in the tale.

So it proved, with Mayenda equalising in the 76th minute and Watson winning the game in injury-time. Both finishes wouldn’t have been out of place in the Premier League. Defender Luke O’Nien had needed oxygen to ease the pain when he dislocated his shoulder in only the second minute.

The sight of him rushing down the touchline to celebrate with his arm heavily strapped, was an image that captured Sunderland’s spirit. Not one single player in Regis Le Bris’ starting team has ever played in the top-flight.

And when the dust on this achievement has settled, the Frenchman will realise that days like this have invariably come at a cost. Leicester, Ipswich and Southampton were promoted on a wave of optimism last season. They all go into the final game of the season with relegation confirmed and a grand total of 12 wins between them.

When Southampton drew with Manchester City to ensure that the record for the lowest points total in Premier League history would remain with Derby County, their fans celebrated with as much joy as when they beat Leeds in the play-off final this time last year.

Nottingham Forest, Brighton and Bournemouth are held up as examples of clubs who have turned punching above their weight into an art form. Yet Forest were docked four points for financial misdeeds last season, Brighton have enjoyed owner loans of almost £400million that have now been ruled illegal and Bournemouth have spent more than £260million on transfers.

Maybe Monsieur Louis-Dreyfus might think about reviving the Bank of England tag attached to Sunderland when they became big spenders almost 80 years ago. One thing for certain is their fans will enjoy the ride.

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