Allardyce will learn to Reid
SAM ALLARDYCE wants to transform Sunderland from survival specialists to a Premier League force.
He celebrated the Black Cats latest great escape alongside club owner Ellis Short into the early hours yesterday.
But the pair will get down to serious business next week when Allardyce, right, will demand the financial backing to take Sunderland to the next level.
And he has pledged to recreate the days of his pal Peter Reid, who led the club to seventhplace finishes in 2000 and 2001. “I have to try to do a Reidy,” he said. “He was brilliant for this club. You should never forget his contribution and I want to emulate his success. “The celebrations after beating Everton were fantastic, but they are not the celebrations we want in the future. We want to move away from the fact we are all so happy at being heroes for surviving. “We have to think much bigger and have much more ambition. We’ll start next season with greater optimism, though the next level of recruitment will be critical to us struggling or not.”