SUNDERLAND club captain Niall Quinn insisted last night: "We are not thinking about being relegated."

The Republic of Ireland striker, who returns to his old stamping ground at Arsenal this afternoon, admits that the Wearsiders have been sucked into anxiety about preserving their Premiership status.

But he stressed: "I don't think there is a danger of us throwing away what we have achieved because of one bad season - we just have to show character and complete the season successfully."

Sunderland have lost on their last three visits to London clubs this season and Quinn expects another tough game against a side whose Championship hopes were given a huge boost when Middlesbrough beat Manchester United at Old Trafford last week.

He said: "With seven games to go we need two back-to-back wins to be safe, though I wouldn't have picked Arsenal away to start that trend - it's going to be a bit of a scramble. They played exhibition stuff against Newcastle in the FA Cup last week and we need to have a game plan to counteract them.

"We have to stop them playing and we are working on that.

"We drew 2-2 there last season so it's not beyond us to get points."

He added: "It would be a disservice to our fans to go down there already one or two goals down in our heads. We have to give everything and, as men, stand up and be counted."

Quinn points out, however, there are several other clubs scrambling about uncomfortably around the relegation zone.

He said: "From 12th place down to Leicester everybody should be worried. It has been a very strange year in the League - Blackburn have been fantastic in the last few weeks while Bolton won the other day. It's not enjoyable for us, even though it has been exciting!"

Quinn emphasised: "Basically we have to stay up, get this season out of the way and start afresh.

"There has been a nervousness about our season and a lack of confidence since just before Christmas. We had a thumping win against Blackburn on Boxing Day and I thought that would get us going, but then we went to Ipswich and had a nightmare.

"There has been an anxiety, which is still there. It has been easier in the last three years - this time we have just about been able to keep our noses in front in the relegation battle, but we are not as confident as we were last year.

"Now we have to stay focused to preserve our status and re-group next season."

Quinn points out that while Arsenal dominated last week's FA Cup quarter-final, they did allow Newcastle to create openings.

He said: "It will be tough at Arsenal, but we can take heart from the fact that Newcastle had chances last weekend - Alan Shearer, Carl Cort and Andy O'Brien all had chances to score and they could have come away with a couple of goals.

"It would be a huge result if we came away with something - it would be huge for us."

The absence of Robert Pires, who is out for the rest of the season with a serious knee injury, will not help the Arsenal cause, believes Quinn.

He said: "Pires has been exceptional. This year he has been brilliant and a joy to watch - he and Dennis Bergkamp together have been like Liam Brady in the old days and it is a small bonus to us that he's not playing.

"But Arsenal have ambitions of winning the League and last weekend's results gives them a bit of an incentive - Manchester United losing at home was a big result for them. But the whole year has been topsy-turvy at the top and anything can happen."

Sunderland are likely to stick with the team which started the second half in the 1-1 home draw against Southampton last week, with the versatile Darren Williams moving to right back and Swedish international Joachim Bjorklund resuming his central defensive partnership with Jody Craddock.

And ace striker Kevin Phillips is hoping to cement his new partnership with Cameroon striker Patrick Mboma by ending a disappointing run of five games without a goal, even though he is being troubled by a stomach strain.

Phillips admitted: "Our partnership has been a bit stop-start.

"I wouldn't say we have hit it off straight away like I did with Niall Quinn, but the Southampton game was only the fourth time we've played together.

"At this stage of the season you would like a settled strike partnership, but these things can take time - partnerships either gel immediately or they don't and it looks like this one might take a bit of time. But time is one thing we don't have with just seven games left and we need to sort it out in time for the game at Arsenal."

Phillips is prepared to battle on with his stomach strain, the same type of injury he carried at the end of last season.

He said: "I'm able to train and I'll be able to play, but the only way that it will heal up is if it is given rest, and unfortunately that's not going to be an option with the important games we have ahead.

"I've been told that playing on with it won't make it any worse and I've just got to accept that when I'm stretching or straining for a ball during a game it will be painful. But that won't bother me because I've set my sights on playing for Sunderland and doing everything I can to help the side."

He added: "I'm desperate for us to get the points that will make us safe and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that we get them as soon as possible - keeping the club in the Premiership is the only priority."

Republic of Ireland striker Kevin Kilbane, who missed the friendly international against Denmark with concussion, has fully recovered and is expected to play on the left flank at Highbury

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