Fairly simple really.. WITH around £800,000 at stake per Premier League place, Martin O'Neill is aware of the importance of leading Sunderland to a strong finish - and feels his players realise that to. After sealing a point at the Etihad Stadium last Saturday with a performance which could quite easily have claimed three points, the Black Cats have a top seven finish in their sights for the first time since 2001. If Sunderland can dent Tottenham's Champions League hopes at the Stadium of Light tomorrow, there is every chance O'Neill could be in charge of a team that has replaced Everton in seventh before meeting them on Monday. After the disappointment of losing to Everton in the FA Cup quarter-final replay last week, O'Neill was heartened by the display at Manchester City which has left him believing the players want to end the season on a high. But he is not prepared to think too far ahead, choosing to ignore the challenge at Goodison Park and focus completely on Tottenham tomorrow. O'Neill said: "I am not thinking that far ahead (Monday). There's no reason to. I think from our viewpoint, with seven games to go, knowing what we have left, we just go full steam ahead against Tottenham. Then we will look to Everton. We have a couple of injury problems at the minute and we will go from there. "We still have plenty to play for, every position in this league is so important in this modern day league. So much so that I don't think it is time to down tools. That was the most pleasing thing, seeing them respond like they did against Manchester City - a quality side." Sunderland are expecting to have Matt Kilgallon available after recovering from the cramp problems he suffered in the latter stages of the draw at City. The 28-year-old hopes to form part of O'Neill's longer term plans as the Sunderland manager heads towards a first summer in charge, which is likely to see a number of changes. Two players O'Neill is reluctant to lose, though, is Stephane Sessegnon and James McClean. Both have attracted interest and there has been speculation that Arsenal and Manchester United are keen, respectively. But O'Neill said: "I haven't any cause to be overly concerned, primarily because I haven't given it any thought. But these are the type of players we need to keep at the football club. "If we are going to progress, these are the players the fans want to see, the likes of McClean and Sessegnon who both belong to us. We've just given a new contract to James, who is worth every single penny out of it, there's no question about that. His attitude has not changed one drop. "If I was advising him, his immediate future has to be at our football club. He's going to play pretty often at the moment. I would love to be able to say to him that his place is in jeopardy. But he holds that place on merit at the moment and he's still just learning the game. "Sessegnon is a bit older and I think he has improved. He's enjoying his football and we'll do everything we can to keep him at the football club. "I think he is happy in the way he's playing, but he's obviously going to attract attention from major football clubs in the European scene."
