Bryan Robson won't be offering his players anger management counselling s essions as they strive to record back-to-back Premiership victories for the first time this season.

A priceless win at Wigan last Sunday has given Albion a golden opportunity to put clear daylight between themselves and the bottom three this weekend with the visit of Sunderland.

There was a blip in midweek when a patched-up Albion team crashed out of the FA Cup to Reading after a gruelling period of extra time.

The fixture against Sunderland tomorrow is Albion's third in six days, but arguably their most important.

Their two nearest rivals, Birmingham and Portsmouth, are locking horns at St Andrew's and if results go in their favour, Albion could be seven points clear of the drop zone tomorrow night.

However, there are a plethora of possibilities that could curtail Robson's plans and complacency is just one of the potential demons lying in wait.

Sunderland arrive at the Hawthorns as good as relegated with only one Premiership win all season, yet Robson insists that if they treat their opponents with disdain, his team will be in for a nasty surprise.

And he cited Darren Carter's reaction to the midweek FA Cup defeat to Reading as the benchmark for his team's future successes.

"Carter got angry on Tuesday against Reading because he didn't want to be beaten and that's the sort of character I want these young lads to build," admitted Robson.

"I don't want them to not be bothered when they get beat. I want them to have this angry side to them because it makes you a better player. Carter's work-rate has been excellent in the last few games. He is communicating a lot more and his game is improving all the time.

"From the age of 22 to 24, I keep expecting someone like Darren to keep improving and try to prove to everyone he is going to be a Premier League player all his career and not just up and down."

However, Robson stressed that controlled anger was a pre-requisite for successful teams and he is a man who can speak with authority on the subject.

He recalls some fearsome lectures from Manchester United skipper Martin Buchan during his days at Old Trafford and he is keen for his own players to replicate that attitude.

"Sometimes, if your teammate needs a rollicking, you've got to tell them," he explained. "If you are going to be a better player, you've got to realise there are times when you rollick and times when you encourage.

"When you are getting angry with a team-mate or maybe yourself, as long as it is a controlled anger, you make yourself a better player because you have more desire."

Albion will need to show all their attributes against Sunderland. Neil Clement and Darren Moore return to bolster the squad but Zoltan Gera, Thomas Gaardsoe, Kanu and Diomansy Kamara are all unavailable.

Geoff Horsfield, Kevin Campbell, Paul Robinson and Steve Watson are all injury doubts, so Robson may have to shuffle his pack once more.

However, whatever team Robson fields, he wants to create an uncomfortable atmosphere for Sunderland.

"I need our fans to give us an unbelievable atmosphere and the players to have real desire," added Robson.

"I have said all along how important it is to get back-to-back wins and the sooner you do that, the better chance your season will have of rolling on.

"But I don't want the fans to underestimate Sunderland. I've seen them in the last two games. If we think they are going to lie down, we've got another think coming. It is a golden chance for us as the teams down there are playing each other."