Sunderland banked another crucial three points in their pursuit of promotion this season with a 2-0 win against Luton Town on Wednesday night, and Patrick Roberts offered an insight into the team’s mentality during the game.
Goals from Enzo Le Fee and Wilson Isidor secured the win at the Stadium of Light this week, which was the perfect remedy for Sunderland after dropping points in their last two home games.
It’s a win that keeps the Black Cats in touching distance of the automatic promotion spots, despite the three teams above them all winning, too.
We appreciated the performances of all the Sunderland players on the night, and Patrick Roberts was full of praise for his teammates, while also giving a hint at a slight tweak in the way they approached the task at hand.
- READ MORE: Patrick Roberts shares Regis Le Bris’ key demand of Sunderland players, he will not allow one thing
Sunderland didn’t get complacent against Luton, they wanted more goals
Speaking via the club’s official social media channel after the game, Roberts discussed the manner of the win, and how the display differed slightly compared to the recent draws against Watford and Plymouth Argyle.
He said: “It was a good performance. A mature performance. Especially after the last two results here. Both halves [against Luton] we were dominant, we deal with their direct threat really well.
“When we got the first goal, we wanted more and more. The second goal was crucial, good timing. We could have had many more.
“Great to get the clean sheet, important three points, as we’ve dropped a few this year already. We showed great character to just carry on, and it gives us momentum going into Monday [against Leeds] which will be another tough test.”
Sunderland have been questioned of late, with some suggesting there is not enough intensity in the team’s pressing, while others have suggested Regis Le Bris is too cautious at times, thus limiting the attacking threat the Black Cats pose.
That certainly wasn’t the case on Wednesday. Sunderland never let Luton have a moment’s peace, and they kept hunting for more goals to really kill the game off.
Sunderland fans torn over Patrick Roberts
It was a good performance from everyone in red and white, but some more than others. Roberts himself will have been disappointed not to get on the scoresheet, having hit the post with a lovely curling effort, but aside from that, he didn’t necessarily have much of an impact on the game.
Sunderland fans are tired of Roberts’ performances lately, with criticisms over his ability to keep the ball and questions raised over whether he genuinely offers anything to the attack.
On the other hand, Sunderland legend Gary Bennett suggested Roberts was ‘excellent’ against Luton and praising the threat the winger brings to the team.
| Statistics | Patrick Roberts (2024/25) |
|---|---|
| Appearance | 31 |
| Minutes | 2,334 |
| Goals | 2 |
| Assist | 5 |
The 28-year-old does have two goals and five assists to his name this season in 31 games, but with the amount of times he gets the ball out wide in dangerous areas, there’s definitely an argument to be made that he could and should have a lot more goal contributions by now.