Finishing fifth is a massive failure when you look at the money they've spent on top of a squad of PL and Championship players. They may have taken their foot off the gas today, but a win would have given them 2 games against Doncaster, who looked nothing special. Instead they've got Portsmouth who have already beaten them at Fratton Park and Wembley. Even if they got past Pompey, they're likely to face Charlton who are the form team (but still not as good as us!).
I wouldn't be surprised to see SD and the chino kid bail during the summer if they don't go up. Buying Sunderland was a gamble worth taking, but only if they got up straight away. Another season in league 1 might leave them dipping into their savings a little more than they'd have liked.