Paul Lambert says the challenge for Town is not just to return to the Championship next season but also to put a long-term infrastructure in place, the Blues boss believing that standards have dropped at Portman Road.
"Our first target is to get back to the Championship,” Lambert told the club site. "It’s going to be tough. There are some big clubs in the division and when you look at the budget Sunderland have got. We will be nowhere near that.
"That’s the challenge for us but success for me also means about the long term, putting an infrastructure in place for the next six years, not six weeks or six months.
"We have to rebuild from top to bottom, on and off the pitch. The standards have dropped for a club of this stature and with the history behind it. It’s a big job, a huge job to turn things around. It’s a challenge we will take on though."