Cattermole: Spirit levels fine

Lee Cattermole has tipped Sunderland to recover from their recent bad run of form in the wake of a 1-0 defeat by Aston Villa.
                                           
Gabriel Agbonlahor scored the only goal of the game to hand the Black Cats their second defeat of the week at the Stadium of Light, following on from their midweek Capital One Cup loss against local rivals Middlesbrough. Sunderland are without a win since the end of September and lie 16th in the fledgling Premier League table, yet captain Cattermole believes the dressing room harmony could prove key to ending their slump.

"The lads are frustrated but we have a great team spirit. This is the best dressing room I've been in in my career," he told the club's official website.

"We will come out of the other side of it. The players have been in this situation before and it's part of football. We have to keep going - it's still early in the season."