Hysén got the second of four goals on Saturday and reckons Sunderland could possibly challenge for a top-two place come the end of the season.
"Of course the players are talking about promotion. It is discussed all the time," said the Swedish international.
"We still believe that there is time for us to make it to the Premiership by automatic promotion and if we can't achieve that we must finish as high as possible so that we can go into the play-offs with a lot of confidence.
"Everything at Sunderland is geared for returning to the Premiership and I am sure it is in the boss's mind because he is always telling us that we have got the best squad at this level."