Sunderland manager Poyet pleads for unity

Sunderland manager Gus Poyet has written an open letter to the club's fans, asking for unity and togetherness as they try to retain their place in the Premier League.

Sunderland stand 15th, just two points above the bottom three and Poyet said staying united was the only way they would survive.

"Let's make sure that we don't let anyone break our relationship," he wrote in the letter published on Sunderland's website on Thursday.

"I promise you that I care and want to win as much as you do and no one thinks more time every day about the team than I do.

"So I invite all of you to stay positive, to be strong, closer to each other and keep believing in what we started together last year, working harder to make it better this season."

Poyet said he took full responsibility for the club's performances and that having stayed up in remarkable fashion last season, now the task was to improve.

"My second aim was to achieve stability, progression and then slowly start bringing a special way of playing football to make you very proud of our team," he said.

"This takes time, but even if the aim is clear during the process, we need to keep competing and winning games somehow."

Sunderland face West Brom in the Premier League on Saturday.