The 23-year-old and his team-mates badly need a win, after last Saturday's brave 1-0 defeat at Manchester United left them rooted inside the Barclays Premier League's relegation zone.

The reverse at Old Trafford, which came just two days after Roy Keane's departure as manager, was their seventh in eight games - six of them in the league - and meant they have taken just three points from the last 21 on offer.

Ferdinand admits victory this weekend is a necessity if the Black Cats are to restore confidence, a process which began at United last weekend.

However, he is adamant that even a defeat would not be disastrous to their survival plan.

He said: "It is a must-win game - but if the worst came to the worst and we didn't win, then it is not dead and buried.

"We are still not even halfway through the season yet, and there are a lot of games and a long way to go.

"But I am sure I and people involved with the club, the fans, the chairman, want us to get out of this situation as soon as possible."

Keane's resignation has left the club in turmoil, with chairman Niall Quinn and his fellow board members currently sifting through applications for his successor.

Whoever is handed the reins at the end of that process will inherit a huge squad - 11 players were out on loan when the Irishman decided to call it a day after a spending spree amounting to more than £70million - and the task of whittling that down to the players he believes can take the club forward.

However, Ferdinand is confident the successful candidate will walk into a dressing room which contains more than enough quality to address the club's current situation.

He said: "The players Roy did buy are all players who have played more than 100 games in the Premier League.

"That shows they have got experience at this level. A lot of them are internationals who have played at the highest level, so they are experienced in big games - and we have got big games week in, week out at the moment.

"You watch training and the quality is still second to none.

"There is enough quality in this dressing room for us not to be where we are at the moment.

"But we are there at the moment and we have got to realise that and we have to do things to get out of it."

In the meantime, coach Ricky Sbragia will once again be at the helm for the visit of Tony Mowbray's side as the Black Cats embark upon a run of three games - the Baggies and Blackburn at home either side of a trip to Hull - in which they would ordinarily fancy their chances.

However, Ferdinand knows they can take nothing for granted.

Asked if that run of fixtures represents a real chance to establish a momentum, he said: "Yes, definitely. But the Premier League is not about paper - it's about what the team does on the day.

"But these are the main games we have got to be looking forward to and want to be winning.

"Fair play going to Manchester United and near enough getting a draw, playing well and putting in a good team performance, but these are our bread-and-butter games against teams which are around us at the moment.

"We have got to beat these teams to start pushing up the league and try to put ourselves on a run."