New Sunderland boss Steve Bruce will be given a substantial transfer pot to consolidate the Black Cats position in the Premiership. "I can't tell you how good a position I feel that we're in to try to push on now," he told the Shields Gazette.
"Sunderland's a well-run club now from top to bottom and it's perfectly poised to take the next step and genuinely establish itself in the top flight.
"It was that idea which appealed to me, allied to the sheer size of the club and the ambition of the people in charge.
"I'm very excited and I would like to convey that excitement to every Sunderland fan out there.
"We should be in a position in the next few months to make the supporters think 'wow, this club is going places," and I'm looking forward to being the manager who goes out there and tries to make it happen.
"I'm going to give the current squad a chance but I know where we need to improve already and I spoke to Niall Quinn about it for two or three hours while the legal people were sorting things out over contracts.
"But if there's one thing I would say, it is that I hope the fans are excited out there because certainly I am - I see exciting times ahead.
"I'm looking at players now, players that I can consider buying, that I've never been able to even contemplate before, so I think the future here for all of us could be very good."
Quinn confirmed that a substantial transfer pot will be made available to Bruce.
He said: "There's been a lot of figures thrown around in the media that, quite frankly, are fanciful.
"Some of the sort of huge sums that have been mentioned won't be spent but there will be serious money there for Steve.
"To get it in perspective, it's not a question of him being given a lump sum and being told: 'off you go', it will be more a case of Steve identifying his targets and the board finding the required funds to bring them in.
"It's fair to say though that he will be genuinely backed in the transfer market and also that we are in a place where the club has never been before in terms of the money it can now spend."
