New Sunderland captain Lorik Cana is using his experience as a refugee from war-torn Kosovo to inspire his performances on the pitch. The Albanian's career had an uncertain start as a refugee from war-torn Kosovo and he was denied a visa ahead of a trial with Arsenal 10 years ago.

He added: "The war was terrible for our people. I didn't lose many persons in my family but friends and former neighbours died and others had their houses destroyed.

"At first it was really hard for me to play football because I was always thinking about the war.

"The worst thing was that, for eight or nine years, there was no possibility for me to go back to Kosovo, no possibility to see the rest if my family and friends.

"Now I get my energy from what happened to the Albanians in Kosovo. I want to give my best all the time, to make my family and my people proud."

On the pitch the 26-year-old now believes that everything is in place for his new side to crack the top-half of the table.

"I'm enjoying the passion at Sunderland. We have a fantastic stadium, a fantastic training ground, fantastic fans," Cana told The Guardian.

"We have a very good team and a real chance to finish in the top 10 this season. Everything is here."