Nigel Clough reckons Sunderland got it wrong when they sacked Simon Grayson after his departure from the Stadium of Light just three months into his reign on Wearside.
The former Leeds United manager was given the boot last week after their 3-3 draw with bottom side Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday evening.
That result left the Black Cats in the Championship's bottom three, in 22nd place on level with the Brewers on 10 points - with a crunch showdown with Burton looming at the Pirelli Stadium later this month.
Not that they've fared much better since sacking Grayson, though - they now sit rock bottom after 16 games following their 1-0 loss to Middlesbrough on Sunday.
And Clough - who was linked with the job in the summer after David Moyes' resignation - reckons chairman Ellis Short was too swift in bringing the curtain down on Grayson's short tenure.
"His managerial record is brilliant, and when you look at it that’s why they hired him," he told Sky Sports' EFL Matters podcast.
"You need more than 18 games. I think it says a lot about Sunderland's expectations as well this season. I think when a team gets relegated, a lot of fans think they'll come straight back up.
"Well, the Championship's not like that. Sometimes it's more difficult. The teams that have been down that for a few years are trying to do the same. Sunderland needs a rebuilding process now."
"(Time is a) precious commodity. You need that, just to survive and get through the first season.
"Stay in the league because that will be the priority now, and then trying to get some stability and building for the next season or two after that."
Sunderland's fall from grace has been a slow one, with the club having seen off eight managers in the last six years following five seasons of dicing with relegation from the Premier League.
Last term proved one season too far, though, as they finished 20th in the top flight - and Clough reckons that the club's fall into a spiral of negativity is to blame - especially at the Stadium of Light, where they haven't won a league match since December last year.
"It's been a succession of seasons where they've been losing games and I think that's the habit they've got into at the moment," he added.
"Especially at home, they've really struggled at home.
Millwall 0 - 1 Burton Albion
"I think there's a cloud over the place that needs lifting.
"If they can get one home win I think that could lift and change things around. It's like a big oil tanker, once it gets turned it’ll get steaming in the right direction."
