'What a place to play football!' - Michael Beale appears to be catching the Sunderland bug

Michael Beale has probably had to wait a while to see the best of Sunderland, but he now seems to be starting to get it.

Michael Beale feels like he is starting to see the very best of Sunderland – both on and off the pitch.

Sunderland came from behind to beat Plymouth 3-1 at the Stadium of Light with the second half probably providing the best performance under Beale so far.

He also received love from the fans who organised a minute’s applause in support of Beale’s four-year-old niece who is battling cancer, and a separate round of applause later to pay tribute to Colliery Tavern landlord John Snaith, who passed away recently.

Luke O'Nien: I have fallen in love with 'wonderfully bonkers' Sunderland

Add in a poor first-half performance and Sunderland conceding the first goal, and the day provided a real rollercoaster of emotion – and in the process seemed to give Beale a real taste of what football on Wearside is like.

"The highs are real highs when you see that second half," Beale reflected after the match. "The lows were a bit lower today at times if I'm honest! What team are we going to be?

“In moments today, the three goals were fantastic and the feeling in the stadium, the applause they gave me and my family but also in the 79th minute they did it for another person's family and that's fantastic, that's the feeling we have in our club.

"These young players are doing everything they can to make the fans happy, and they're right behind them. It's where we want it to be at the moment.

“The fans here, when they're behind our team, it's a young team and I don't think even the fans understand how much it lifts them.

“In that 10 or 15 minute period today when we're scoring goals and attacking and the crowd is up, what a place to play football."

---

READ MORE SUNDERLAND NEWS

• Sunderland contract situation: Who is nearing the end of their current deal?
• Top Ten: Sunderland's best ever January signings
• Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham names two former Sunderland players as his heroes
• Jordan Willis and seven other Sunderland careers ruined by injury
• Sell to thrive, not sell to survive: The Sunderland 'model' explained - in their own words
• Luke O'Nien and eight other Sunderland players who successfully changed positions