Sunderland face an afternoon of high tension when they visit Swansea on Saturday for an important new test of their ability to haul themselves out of trouble.
Although victories in three of the past four games have restored faith in David Moyes' side, such was the damage inflicted by the earlier winless run that defeat at the Liberty Stadium could send see them back to the bottom of the Premier League in their opponents' place.
Swansea collapsed to a 5-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur last weekend as Sunderland were beating Premier League champions Leicester City 2-1 at the Stadium of Light.