After signing a new five-year deal this summer, Lee Cattermole has spoke of his desire to leave a legacy at Sunderland, via Shields Gazette.
The Black Cats get their new season underway this Saturday, away to Leicester City, but Cattermole believes that this will not be an early battle between two relegation contenders, and that the club can really push on over the next few years.
New deal was a 'no-brainer' for Cattermole
The midfielder's new contract will keep him on Wearside until 2020, and he revealed that this decision was made because he believes he can "help take the club somewhere special" in that time, saying that he "want[s] to be a part" of the promising years ahead.
As well as that, Cattermole admitted he has "fall[en] in love" with Sunderland, calling it "[his] club." He revealed that the "place has definitely got [him]" and that the next five years will "play a big part in his life."
The 27-year-old added that Sunderland is "a brilliant club with a massive fanbase" and thus signing a new deal "was a no-brainer."
Under-achieving Sunderland can compete for top-half finish
Despite all the positives he had to say about the club, Cattermole admitted that they are "underachieving at the moment" and that they "need to look to push on" in the Premier League, citing "the kind of heights" from the "Peter Reid era" as a target to work towards.
Sunderland won promotion from the second tier and established two consecutive seventh-placed finishes in the top flight under Reid in the early 2000s, and Cattermole thinks that "if you can finish in and around there, then that's progress."
The midfielder said that he "[doesn't] see any reason" why the Black Cats cannot compete with the likes of "Swansea [City], Stoke [City] and Southampton," with him seeing these clubs as "the target for [Sunderland]." He believes that, "throw in a decent cup run" too, this seventh to ninth-placed region, where the three aforementioned sides finished last season, is "where the club has to look to be."
Black Cats stronger than ever
Cattermole is confident that the Black Cats can avoid another relegation scrap this year as the club have strengthened well over the summer, thanks to the "great backing from the owner."
The club have brought in Adam Matthews, Sebastian Coates, Younes Kaboul and Jeremain Lens during this transfer window, and Cattermole believes that, as a result, he is currently a part of "the best group of players" that he has "ever been a part of" on Wearside.
Behind the scenes and in terms of the club's structure, the midfielder has also seen improvement. He referred to the time "two years ago [when he] lost [his] squad number" having fallen out-of-favour under then-manager Paolo di Canio, and said that "a lot has changed since then," for the better.
Cattermole admitted that "massive improvements" cannot be made "overnight," but he "believe[s] in the structure of the club" now and also "where the people in charge want [Sunderland] to go."
He revealed that he and the club "sat down before [he] signed" his new deal, and that "everything they [told him] was great." Now, "over the next couple of seasons," the team "have to really try to make a name for [themselves]."
The 27-year-old said that Sunderland don't want to just focus on "staying in the league" every season, but that they "want to try and build something," and he "just want[s] to make sure that the players that come [to the club]" are aware and know that they are aiming "to push on;" that is their aim and their vision.
Cattermole wants to leave his own legacy
As well as helping to take them to great heights during the next five years, Cattermole is also keen to write his own name into Sunderland's club history through his contributions.
He said that he could have just "plod out [his] career" by "spreading [his] time around five or six different clubs," but instead he has committed his future to the North-East side and now he "feel[s] like [he has] a chance to be remembered" on Wearside.
He described this opportunity as "a massive thing" and said that, "when [he] leave[s]," he wants to have made sure that "people still remember [him]" by helping Sunderland "achieve something really special."