SUNDERLAND boss Roy Keane prepared for today's clash with Leeds United revealing he has little sympathy for the club's wretched plight - or any other side who once enjoyed the fruits of the Premiership but have since fallen on hard times.

And that includes both today's opponents and his own club.

Leeds visit the Stadium of Light as the Championship's bottom but one club and on the brink of dropping in to the third tier of the football for the first time. It is a staggering statistic when the club's history and tradition is considered.

Leeds were the late 1960s and early 1970s equivalent of Manchester United. In a seven-year period they were crowned League champions (1969, 74), FA Cup winners (72), League Cup winners (68), UEFA Cup/Fairs Cup winners (68, 71) and, usually finished runners up in the aforementioned competitions the years they did not lift the trophy.

In more recent memory they were the last club to lift the old Division One title (1992) before it was named the Premiership and, a little over five years ago Leeds were competing in a Champions League semi-final.

Spendthrift former chairman Peter Ridsdale says the club paid the price for trying to relive their former glory.

But if Leeds were trying to live the dream then so were several others, including the Black Cats who still sit on a mountain of debt.

"It is none of my business what's going on at Leeds," said Keane, looking to bounce back from last Friday's 1-0 defeat at Crystal Palace. "You can look at other clubs in the Championship such as, Birmingham, West Brom, Crystal Palace, Norwich,and ourselves. We're all clubs who were recently in the Premiership and all of these clubs probably feel they should be in the Premiership.

"It is all about getting there and that's where we want to be. But you have to earn the right to stay there.

"When you get relegated it can lead to lots of things. A lot of clubs are in financial disarray, Leeds were one of them and so are Sunderland as well.

"A lot of clubs have spent big when they have got in to the Premiership and have given big contracts and it's not just worked out.

"I really can't comment too much on Leeds. They probably feel they should be in the Premiership but you have to earn the right."

If Keane was injecting a heavy dose of realism into the foolish financial mess Leeds, and other clubs, find themselves in then two of the Black Cats' current squad take a more sympathetic reflection.

Sunderland enjoyed a 3-0 win at Elland Road back in September, but both Steve Caldwell and Liam Miller had spells on loan at the club in recent years and they recall their Yorkshire spells fondly.

Caldwell was allowed to go out on loan by Sir Bobby Robson while a Newcastle United player and spent the last four months of Leeds' ill-fated relegation campaign in 2004.

"I had a great time there," confessed the defender who played 13 games and scored one goal for Eddie Gray's outfit. "It's a club I hold very dear to my heart from the short time I was there. It's a special club and you get drawn into the magnetism of the place.

"They're in a little bit of trouble right now and I hope they climb up the table, but I'll be playing them on Boxing Day desperate for the three points like everyone else.

"I'm very thankfully thankful to Leeds and especially Eddie Gray, a man who's no longer with the club in a coaching capacity. He was a fantastic man who gave me my chance to play regular football and to learn.

"He stuck with me and gave me confidence at a time when others didn't."

Miller echoed a similar sentiment. The Republic of Ireland international spent seven months at Leeds on loan from Man United, racking up 30 appearances.

"I wasn't playing with (Manchester) United at the time so playing football week in, week out was just what I wanted again," said the 25-year-old. "There's been a lot of new faces but all of the lads were great when I was there.

"They made me feel very welcome from day one and I still keep in touch with the odd one or two - if Dave Healy or Jonathan Douglas ever return my calls!

"I was very surprised at how they've done this season. It's disappointing because having played for them the year before you don't want to see them doing badly, you want them to do well."