VITO MANNONE has highlighted Sam Allardyce’s meticulous defensive work as a key factor in Sunderland’s successful rise out of the Premier League relegation zone.

The Black Cats hauled themselves out of the bottom three when they claimed a goalless draw with Arsenal at the weekend, with the clean sheet making it three shut-outs in their last four matches.

That record stands in marked contrast to the club’s defensive struggles at the start of the season, when they conceded two or more goals in seven of their opening 11 league games.

The January arrival of Lamine Kone has helped strengthen the back four, with the Ivory Coast international forming an effective centre-half partnership with Younes Kaboul.

However, Allardyce’s work on the training ground has also been a hugely important factor, with Mannone highlighting the Sunderland manager’s hands-on approach as one of his biggest strengths.

“He knows what to do because he’s been in the Premier League for 20-odd years,” said the Black Cats goalkeeper. “We’ve been working on defending properly a lot, and on doing the basics right.

“He is quite hands-on on the training pitch, and we always have a day or two during the week where we work on the defensive bits. Since he came in, I think to have the same people in their roles also helps a lot.

“It helps when you are not changing every few games because it is difficult for whoever comes in. It is not nice to come in and not know each other, and it is not nice for who is there already and who needs to help the team-mate that is just coming in as well as focusing on their own game.”

As well as signing Kone to strengthen the back four in January, Sunderland also brought in Jan Kirchhoff, and while the German made his Black Cats debut in a defensive role, he has subsequently established himself as an effective shield stationed in front of the back four.

“It has been good to have him there,” added Mannone. “To be honest though, all the new team-mates who have come in have helped. They have all been brilliant and made a difference. I think that each one is giving the right performance every game, and the right help. They have made us much more solid.”

The challenge now is to replicate that defensive resilience in the final four matches, starting with Saturday’s trip to the Britannia Stadium to take on Stoke City.

“That is what we have to do,” said Mannone. “That is what the manager is asking for, although it is a tough task. It will be difficult, but every game we go into at the moment, we are thinking, ‘I have to keep a clean sheet’.

“If it happens like it did against Arsenal, I will go home happy that we have managed to do it. We did a good job in that direction, and it’s true what he keeps saying – a clean sheet keeps you up.”

Stoke haven’t looked like keeping a clean sheet recently, with their last three outings having seen them concede four goals to Manchester City, Tottenham and Liverpool.

Mark Hughes’ side, who are sitting in tenth position, appear to have switched off for the summer, but Allardyce insists it would be foolish to take them lightly despite their recent struggles.

“We are in good form at the moment, and if we play anything like we did at Norwich, we will give them one hell of a game,” said the Sunderland boss. “But I would expect Mark will have Stoke really revved up, and he will want to stop this very poor run of performances.

“It could spoil what has been an exceptional season for him because the fans are starting to ask what’s gone wrong and what’s happened, and on what they’ve achieved this year, that would be a shame. But I hope they’re as bad as they have been in the last three games!”