CHRIS COLEMAN wants Sunderland’s League One-threatened players to go into the final eight matches of the season appreciating how lucky they are – dreaming it could just spark a great escape act.

Even though the Black Cats are rooted to the foot of the Championship, Coleman thinks not all players – regardless of what club they play for – fully understand how fortunate they are.

The former Fulham and Blackburn defender is in a strong position to stress the point, having been forced to retire early at the age of 32 in 2002 from injuries sustained in a serious car crash 18 months earlier.

Now, aged 47, the Welshman is trying to engineer a way to steer Sunderland out of a thoroughly depressing position.

The Sunderland boss said: “I was 30 and it was done and dusted for me. It was all about training and playing for me, that feeling of being in the tunnel before the game, being part of a team, I loved it.

“Playing in front of a crowd, all that. I don’t take kindly to people who take that for granted. Yeah we all take certain things for granted but I’ve got no time for anybody who is in it for the wrong reasons, you can probably guess it.

“Once I got to 25/26, I knew what it was all about, how lucky I was, but it was all over at 30. For that reason I’m probably not a good match up for certain players, because of my mentality and their mentality, people not getting out of it what they should be.

“Let’s say a player earns £5m for five years. There’s £25m in the bank, but I tell you it is a long life from 35 onwards, no matter what it is in the bank. Can you look back when you’re done, on a career you were lucky to have, and say you made the most of it?

“John O’Shea, he can. He’s 36, still plays every week, hasn’t missed a training session. Whether he plays good or bad, he doesn’t miss. When he hangs his boots up he can look back and say he’s squeezed every last drop out of it.

“He’ll have absolutely no regrets. Someone else may have another £20m more in the bank but they’ll be full of regrets. They don’t know it now but they will, and they should.”

Earlier this week Coleman spent a few hours at the Caterpillar plant in Peterlee, experiencing how the global organisation produces the articulated trucks for the world at its County Durham base.

He was drilling and then driving a virtual truck during his time there, and mingled with a retiring employee who has been a lifelong Sunderland season ticket holder. Coleman was there with his squad, which had travelled down by team coach, because of a strong partnership Caterpillar has.

He said: “Our job, can I even call it that? When I was a player, I had no idea how lucky I was. You think it’s going to last forever and like that *clicks fingers* it’s gone. I look back and think it was the best time of my life. This is the second best (managing).

“Even us, bottom of the league, looking for a new owner, it is a lot of negativity but we’re still lucky. Two massive games this weekend, what else would we rather be doing? Yeah we’d rather be top of the league, but we’re still lucky and I’m still looking forward to the weekend.

“They have this hallway here, and it is like you’re coming down the tunnel at the Stadium of Light. That’s incredible, I loved that. Not every club has that effect. It tells you what this club is.

“I’m witnessing this really tough time now, and we’re not doing what we need to be doing. When you’re at a club as big as this, there’s no escape. You fill your car up and people want to know what’s going on, that’s how it is.

“I just think what it will be like if we flip it, if it becomes positive. I still dream about that, I hold on to that. If it’s not going well then people will let you know about it, but I came here because of the passion of people around the club.”

Sunderland’s situation needs to improve quickly if they are to stand a chance of staying up, starting with the Easter fixtures at Derby on Good Friday and then against Sheffield Wednesday at the Stadium of Light on Monday.

Rather than demand extra work during the international break, the players have been given plenty time off.

Coleman said: “We didn’t want to arrange a game for this break. If you’re playing very, very well then yeah a game can help you keep your rhythm, but in our situation to be honest it was the last thing we needed. We wanted a respite really, get away from each other to be honest. It’s been good the last few days, it has been very different because we need different results.”

Sunderland’s preparations have already been hit with the blow that Swedish forward Joel Asoro will be missing over Easter.

He was withdrawn from Sweden Under-21s' game with Cyprus on Tuesday after suffering a head injury. The team's physio has suggested he suffered concussion, meaning - according to guidelines that were changed a few years ago - he has to sit out for at least six days and it can often take longer, as a precaution.

Sweden's physio Fredrik Bergstrom said: “Joel has incurred a brain injury in connection with an aerial duel at the start of the second half. Replaced directly. He is, under the circumstances, OK.

“He has a concussion. Return can not be forecast until the brain scan is started. It is at least 24 hours between the results of the scan. Earliest return six days after concussion. This is being evaluated continuously."