While the scoreline may have been close, Sunderland definitely got the better of Derby County this week, and Paul Warne has admitted his opponents were far better in one key area.
A first-half goal from Sunderland’s ‘golden boy’ Eliezer Mayenda was enough to secure all three points for Regis Le Bris’ side on Tuesday night.
Try as they might, Derby just couldn’t find a way to penetrate the Sunderland defence, and the Black Cats’ promotion push goes marching on.
Derby boss, Paul Warne, has questioned Sunderland’s quality after the game, but he couldn’t deny one important truth about his opponents.
Sunderland’s pace in attack is frighteningly good
Speaking to the press (via the Sunderland Echo) after seeing his side fall to defeat at home to the Black Cats, Paul Warne was gracious enough to praise the Sunderland squad for their pace and athleticism, which he and his players found terrifying at times.
“Sunderland have pace, which I love,” Warne said. “At times when we got stretched it wasn’t from unbelievable rotations, which they can do, it was from athleticism. That’s scary,” he added.
So, how do you deal with that? Well, sometimes, you just have to laugh at the challenge facing you. Warne said: “We were almost laughing looking at the pace they had in the last game. They’ve got a really good chance [in the promotion race].”
Indeed, Sunderland’s attacking roster, particularly Eliezer Mayenda and Wilson Isidor upfront, proved to be dangerous for Derby time and time again on the night, and the Rams didn’t seem equipped to deal with their pace, power, and physical attributes.
Sunderland are going to push promotion race right to the wire
After picking up another three points, Sunderland are now ten points clear of fifth-placed Middlesbrough, and 13 points clear of West Brom in seventh. There’s still a long way to go, but surely the Black Cats can at least secure a play-off place this season, then?
It would take an almighty drop-off in form for them to slip down the Championship table so dramatically now, and with the way they are playing, that just doesn’t look like happening at all.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  Sheff UtdSheffield Utd | 28 | 18 | 6 | 4 | 40 | 18 | 22 | 58 |
| 2 |  LeedsLeeds | 27 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 51 | 19 | 32 | 56 |
| 3 |  SunderlandSunderland | 28 | 15 | 9 | 4 | 40 | 22 | 18 | 54 |
| 4 |  BurnleyBurnley | 27 | 14 | 11 | 2 | 31 | 9 | 22 | 53 |
| 5 |  MiddlesbroughMiddlesbrough | 28 | 12 | 8 | 8 | 46 | 34 | 12 | 44 |
| 6 |  BlackburnBlackburn | 28 | 12 | 6 | 10 | 31 | 26 | 5 | 42 |
Despite being at a disadvantage to their promotion rivals in terms of financial power and sheer squad depth, Sunderland are matching the likes of Leeds, Burnley and Sheffield United every step of the way. It’s just a shame that one team will have to miss out on promotion.
Hopefully, Sunderland can nab one of those top two spots and go up automatically. But, if it has to be the play-off route, you simply cannot write Le Bris’ men off, as they’ve proven time and time again this season that they can not only compete with, but beat, the best teams in the division.