HAVING come back from their last three trips to Wearside winless Arsenal should know it better than most, but Phil Bardsley believes the whole Premier League are starting to regard Sunderland as tough cookies.

Since Martin O’Neill’s appointment in December, the Black Cats have lost only twice.

Both reverses came in London, to teams chasing Champions League spots. Bardsley believes opponents are starting to take notice.

The defender said: “The players are showing a great attitude to win football matches and it has been showing.

“We go into the Arsenal games confident we can get something out of them.

“People are now thinking we are hard to beat. We are a team full of desire. We are set up to make it difficult for opponents. If you can do that and then have players who can create chances and score goals, which we have, there is always a chance you will win matches.”

Having won their last three league matches without conceding, right-back Bardsley thinks the revival has been built from the back.

“The boss has changed bits and bobs defensively,” said the 26-year-old defender, who played under O’Neill (pictured left) while on loan at Aston Villa.

“We are defending set-pieces really well. He has not done too much but he has been brilliant in what he has been saying to us.

“He is a winner and he has shown that during his past. We are playing like he wants us to.

“We are defending really strongly because we are all working as a unit. We are putting bodies on the line, being brave where it matters and in our own box.

“We are also doing it in an attacking sense. When there is a loose ball we are on top of it.”

Up to eighth, the “E” word has been heard on Wearside recently.

Bardsley, though, added: “We have only won two FA Cup ties and climbed up the table, it is far too early to be thinking along the lines of Europe. For now it is all about finishing in the top half of the table.

“If Europe was to come along after that then great.”