Sunderland skipper John O'Shea says new manager Paolo di Canio has lifted the squad's confidence from day one.
The Irishman reckons it was Di Canio's opening gambit which inspired the turnaround.
"He came in on the very first day and said that he took the job because he believed in us," said O'Shea.
"He told us the quality the team had and the boys have taken that on board and believe what he's telling us.
"At the time, everyone was looking at our fixtures and thinking we had a difficult run-in but we had to forget about that and just listen to the manager."