Xhaka promises Sunderland will be 'on fire' in first European tie for 53 years

Sunderland step back onto the European stage on Wednesday night for the first time in 53 years. The Europa League opener against AZ Alkmaar will be played in front of a near 49,000 crowd at the Stadium of Light, and captain Granit Xhaka is determined to make the occasion count. The Swiss midfielder has spoken openly about his dream of reaching another European final, this time with the Wearsiders.

• Sunderland are playing in Europe for the first time since the 1973-74 Cup Winners' Cup campaign, which ended against Sporting.
• Granit Xhaka, a two-time Europa League finalist with Arsenal and Bayer Leverkusen, says the stadium will be 'on fire'.
• AZ Alkmaar travel to Wearside having won five and drawn one of their recent Eredivisie matches.
• Régis Le Bris wants his side to be strong in both the Premier League and Europe instead of playing the role of tourists.
• The December trip to San Siro has turned the phrase 'Mackem in Milan' into a badge of honour for Sunderland fans.

Xhaka sets the tone for a big night at the Stadium of Light

European football has been absent from Wearside since the days when Roker Park directors used a Cup Winners' Cup run to help finance floodlight improvements for the arrival of colour television. The current picture is broadcast in HD around much of the globe, and Xhaka has jokingly suggested that viewers may need to adjust their brightness controls.

“The stadium will be on fire,” says Xhaka. “And I want to see our players on fire, on and off the ball. I’ve always been a dreamer and, for me, it’s a big, big dream to reach another European final and to get it with this club.”

The 33-year-old turned down the chance to rejoin Xabi Alonso at Chelsea over the summer. Instead, he stayed at a club that sealed seventh place in the Premier League and secured only the second European campaign in its history. The message he delivered after the win against Chelsea was clear: this was just the beginning.

Sunderland balance Premier League demands with Europa League ambition

Le Bris faces the challenge of managing a second successive top-flight season while dealing with the demands of continental football. The December trip to San Siro has already captured the imagination of supporters and forced Newcastle fans to retire a long-standing chant declaring that nobody would ever see a Mackem in Milan. 'Mackem in Milan' T-shirts have quickly become popular among Sunderland followers.

Before Italy, however, comes a demanding opener against a free-scoring AZ Alkmaar. The Dutch side have been in excellent form in the Eredivisie and will arrive with Kees Smit, a 20-year-old midfielder rated among the most promising young talents in Europe. Xhaka and the Sunderland midfield are likely to face a serious test.

From 1973 Cup Winners' Cup to a long-term European project

The contrast with Sunderland's previous European adventure is stark. In 1973, the club entered the Cup Winners' Cup as a Second Division side after their famous FA Cup triumph over Leeds. That run ended with a narrow aggregate defeat against Sporting in Lisbon, and the squad soon broke apart.

Under the majority ownership of Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, the ambition is different. Five years ago Luke O’Nien was playing for Sunderland in League One against clubs such as Accrington Stanley and Fleetwood. Now he is part of the matchday squad for a European tie, a living symbol of the club's remarkable transformation.

Le Bris wants Sunderland to go all in on both fronts

Sunderland's French manager is proud of the achievement, but he does not want his players to settle for the status of accidental tourists. In a season that mixes domestic and continental demands, Le Bris has urged his team to embrace the opportunity with total commitment.

“It’s a privilege to be here,” Le Bris says. “I’m proud but we’ve earned it, the players worked very hard last season. Now we have a good opportunity and it’s important to go all in. We want to be strong in both the Premier League and Europe.”

The reunion with Enzo Le Fée, who he first coached as a 12-year-old at Lorient, adds a personal layer to the journey. The two Frenchmen have been central figures in the club's rise, and neither appears willing to treat this European campaign as a one-off celebration.

The dressing-room energy that can carry Sunderland in Europe

Xhaka believes the key to going deep in Europe lies as much in the dressing room as on the pitch. With Nordi Mukiele, Reinildo, Omar Alderete, Noah Sadiki, Le Fée, Brian Brobbey and Xhaka himself providing continental experience, the captain is convinced the collective mentality is right.

“To succeed in Europe you need energy in the dressing room, and that is what we have,” explains the Swiss midfielder. “The energy, the connectivity, the togetherness in our dressing room is amazing. This team has the desire and the hunger to compete every single day, and game by game it will show it.”

Sunderland want this return to European football to be about much more than nostalgia. The club, the coaching staff and the players all see the visit of AZ Alkmaar as the first step of a journey with no fixed end point. On Wednesday night, a full stadium and an aggressive team will offer the first evidence of how far the project can go.