PAOLO Di Canio has conceded Sunderland face an uphill task to prise Danny Rose from Tottenham this summer, but will make a pursuit of the full-back his first priority once his side's Premier League status is secured.

Rose will play the final game of his season-long loan spell when the Black Cats entertain Southampton on Sunday, as he is ineligible for the trip to White Hart Lane on the final day of the season.

The England under-21 international has hinted at a desire to remain in the North-East permanently, but Andre Villas-Boas has given a strong indication that he would like the left-back to return to north London and replace Benoit Assou-Ekotto in his first-team plans.

Di Canio will not be finalising his own plans until Sunderland conclusively banish their relegation fears, but the Italian would clearly love to be in a situation where he could continue to work with Rose in the future.

“It's clear he's had a very good season, but I don't want to talk too much about Danny because he's a Tottenham player,” said the Sunderland boss. “(Andre) Villas-Boas will want him back. I don't want to spend too much time talking about a player that we probably won't see next season.

“But speaking generally, he's had a very good year as part of a group of players that have had an average season. His enthusiasm and quality are clear.

“If we want to build a team that can fight for a different target, with different responsibilities, can he be capable of performing under that pressure? And can he maintain his improvement, on and off the ball? I think yes “He's a player that I like. I like working with young players because when you can help improve them in some situations, it's very rewarding.

“As a coach and a manager, you want to work with players who you can improve because it gives you satisfaction. But at the moment, let's concentrate on staying up first before we talk about other things.”

Simon Mignolet is likely to be named Sunderland's Player of the Season, but Rose can justifiably claim to have been the club's best outfield player by a distance this term.

The 22-year-old has flourished at the Stadium of Light, and clearly benefited from the opportunity to play regular Premier League football for the first time in his career.

His ability to attack on the overlap has enhanced Sunderland's creativity considerably, with his goal at Aston Villa underlining his ability to threaten opposition defenders. However, Di Canio has highlighted his work when the Black Cats are not in possession as a key area of potential improvement in his game.

“In my opinion, he can improve a lot defensively,” he said. “He's an attacking-minded left-back, but he has to improve a lot defensively.

“People have to realise there are two phases in the game – possession ball and non-possession ball. It's crucial to be good in both situations. I don't want to say he's not very good when we're not in possession of the ball, but he can improve a lot. He can improve the timing of his tackling and he needs to learn when and how to be aggressive.

“But everybody can improve, and he's only young. You can see how easy he finds it to beat an opponent. He makes it look easy, but it's very difficult. His goal against Aston Villa was like one you might see from the Barcelona left-back.”