Sunderland captain Dan Neil has taken the positives from the recent defeat to Leeds United.
Sunderland were defeated at Elland Road against Leeds United as the Black Cats’ promotion chances were hampered.
Despite a first-half goal courtesy of French forward Wilson Isidor, Regis Le Bris’ side were unable to see out the win as two late goals from Pascal Struijk wrapped up the three points for the Whites.
Many have criticised elements of the performance, such as Le Bris’ decisions surrounding substitutions, as well as Gary Bennett slating the ability of Sunderland in possession.
On the other hand, Sunderland team captain Dan Neil has looked towards the positives of the defeat, as well as why the Black Cats eventually fell to a defeat.
Sunderland captain Dan Neil hails team performance despite moment where Black Cats ‘struggled’
Leeds United was always going into the game as favourites, partly down to their incredible form at Elland Road, as they have lost just one league match at home.
Nonetheless, Sunderland looked brilliant in moments, particularly in the first half, as Le Bris’ side went into the interval with a deserved one-goal lead.
Sunderland man Neil has also seen these positives but has also highlighted why exactly hius side slipped up in the second stanza.
Per Sunderland Echo, Neil said: “It’s a really hard one to take. There’s been a few this year where we’ve conceded late, which is no secret, so we’re really disappointed with that. But I thought, analysing the game as a whole, I thought the first half we were really good, I thought we were the better team by a mile, I thought we controlled the ball out of possession really well.
“We forced them down the sides, didn’t let them get in behind with their speed, kept the ball in front of them, we transitioned really well, found that first pass which allowed us to get up the pitch. I thought we got that one goal, but I thought we could have maybe been two up going into the half. The second half was always going to be a different story, we said that in there.
“This place, when it gets going, they get right behind them, and they did right to the end. We struggled to get out a little bit in the second half, but I thought we still defended the box really, really well. I can’t really remember too many big chances that they had, up until the two late goals.
“We’ll have to look back at it, take the positives in terms of the first half and how we defended. We’ve also got to look at how we couldn’t get out of the half in possession, because I think a team of our quality in possession needs to find a way to do that, especially in these big games.”
Dan Neil character will shine out and help after troubling defeat
The manner in which Sunderland eventually lost Elland Road, which saw Struijk bag the winner in the fifth minute of stoppage time, was without a doubt soul-crushing.
Because of this, it is great to see Neil highlight the reasons why they fell short, but was also fully aware of how his side performed in regards to the positives, which there were plenty of.
For any side to go head-to-head with Leeds United in such a manner must be praised, and that should certainly be the case with Sunderland as well.