Lee Johnson’s men are enjoying a rich vein of form at the moment that has seen them climb up to fifth in the standings, occupying a playoff spot.
The Black Cats are now just six points behind Lincoln City, who sit in second the league standings, and former Sunderland star Elliott believes the Wearside giants have what it takes to bridge that gap.
Elliott has backed Sunderland to achieve automatic promotion to the Championship and has picked out skipper Max Power and Leadbitter to play huge roles under Johnson as they near the business end of the season.
The ex-striker believes Leadbitter’s presence will be invaluable to Sunderland as he will have the experience to lead the team with a cool head if they manage to reach the top two spots in the remainder of the season.
Elliott wrote in his Sunderland Echo column: “Having experience of automatic promotion will be massive going forward for the team.
“Having that know-how could be the difference of keeping a cool head when everyone else may be getting a bit excited.
“With that in mind, it’s reassuring that Max Power has that type of experience, and I really hope Grant Leadbitter will not be missing for too long.
“Grant’s presence will be invaluable to the team if they reach those automatic slots at some stage.
“He is a player that has been there and done it and his calmness would no doubt rub off on those with less experience.
“I’ll say it quietly, but I genuinely believe this team can go on and achieve automatic promotion.”
Leadbitter suffered a dislocated shoulder in his team’s 2-2 draw against Crewe Alexandra at the weekend and Johnson will be hoping he will have the midfielder back in the squad soon.
