DAN NEIL has spent a sizeable part of the last week wallowing in the nostalgia of the 50th anniversary of Sunderland’s FA Cup final win over Leeds United in 1973.

On Tuesday, he was in the upstairs function room of the Peacock pub in Sunderland city centre, watching the cast of The Sunderland Story rehearse one of the scenes that will feature in this month’s play celebrating the football club’s history. Having been raised in a family of diehard Sunderland fans, the 21-year-old knows all about the glories of the past.

Tomorrow, however, attention will switch to the present and the future. If Sunderland beat Preston at Deepdale in their final game of the regular Championship season, they will qualify for the play-offs if Millwall fail to beat Blackburn Rovers or Coventry City lose at Middlesbrough. Beyond that, the promised land of the Premier League could be just three games away. These are exciting times on Wearside, and Neil is thrilled to be an integral part of them.

“Initially, this season, it was a case of, ‘Let’s just stay in the league’,” said Neil, who has featured in 44 of Sunderland’s 45 Championship matches so far this season. “But now, we’re thinking, ‘Why not? Why can’t we go up this year?’

“When is the right time to go to the Premier League? When will you get your next opportunity? We’ve got an opportunity this year, and I think we need to go all guns blazing to try to take it.

“In the last three weeks, all the results have massively gone in our favour really. We probably couldn’t have dreamed of a better scenario, other than beating Watford last weekend, which would have been a bit better. We’ve given ourselves every chance – we just need to go to Preston and get a win, and hopefully everything will go our way.”

Last year, the pressure could hardly have been higher as Sunderland headed to Morecambe on the final day of the League One season knowing they needed a victory to guarantee their play-off place. Given they had already had three unsuccessful attempts to get out of League One, promotion was the be all and end all for Alex Neil and his players. That they went on to triumph over Wycombe at Wembley was both a cause for celebration and a huge source of relief.

Twelve months on, and things are different. Yes, Wembley beckons again. But this time, after a season in which Sunderland have already massively exceeded expectations, promotion would be a hugely welcome surprise rather than a minimum requirement.

The Northern Echo: Sunderland midfielder Dan NeilSunderland midfielder Dan Neil (Image: Ian Horrocks)

“There have been so many ups and downs over the course of the season,” said Neil. “We were going great, but then we had that little spell around February time, around the time of the Rotherham game, and that just seemed to take the wind out of everyone’s sails.

“I think that was point where everyone really thought, ‘Right, it’s not going to happen’. Then we picked up again, but when we drew the game against Huddersfield, again I think people probably thought, ‘Right, that’s it’.

“But then we’ve kept plugging away and we’ve just had a run where other results have gone our way. We’re unbeaten since the international break, we’ve picked up good points and good wins, and we’re right back in the mix now.

“It doesn’t feel like there’s been a lot of pressure, probably because at various stages, people have probably thought that it’s too much for us. That’s meant that we’ve been able to go out there and not really have to think about the bigger picture. We’ve been able to just go out there and play.”

Neil has certainly done that, with his performances having earned him a new contract at the Stadium of Light and attracted the attention of a number of clubs in the Premier League. A maiden England Under-21 call-up can surely not be too far away, with Neil having displayed his versatility this season as he has alternated between being a ball-playing creator at the heart of midfield and a defensive fulcrum capable of covering for injured skipper Corry Evans.

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Tony Mowbray loves the youngster, at one stage comparing him to Michael Carrick, and while there might be a 38-year gap between manager and player, it is clear that the respect is mutual.

“The trust that he’s placed in me has been phenomenal,” said Neil. “I can’t thank him enough. Obviously, with Corry getting injured and the lack of experience in midfield, because that got sprung upon me, it’s developed me into a different type of player, or at least added another string to my bow. Off the pitch, I think I’ve matured a bit, and part of that is down to the manager keeping faith in me and trusting me to go out there and do the job. I can’t thank him enough for that.”

All of which brings us to tomorrow and the trip to Preston. The Sunderland Story that will be presented to Wearside’s theatre-going public later this month ends before the present day. Might there need to be an updated version in 12 months’ time featuring another successful Wembley visit in the Championship play-off final?

“I know it’s a cliché, but there’s no point thinking about the Premier League yet,” said Neil. “Ultimately, we need to beat Preston. If we don’t beat Preston, then there’s no point even talking about the play-offs or promotion or anything like that. We need to go and beat Preston, hopefully things go our way, and then we can look forward to the play-offs from there.”