Sunderland escaped a tricky tie with Preston North End on Tuesday night and managed to grab a point in the closing stages of the game.
Many had expected Sunderland to secure a win over Preston, given current form and the strength of the Black Cats compared to Paul Heckingbottom’s team.
Regis Le Bris changed his system for the game, opting for a 4-4-2 and partnering Eliezer Mayenda and Wilson Isidor in attack.
But, for large chunks of the game, Sunderland were second best, lethargic, and frustrating to watch. Still, it sounds like Le Bris felt the same frustration about his opponents on the day.
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Regis Le Bris glad Sunderland found ‘solution’ to Preston low block
After the last meeting between Preston and Sunderland at Deepdale, Paul Heckingbottom relished how his team matched the Black Cats, and that was clearly part of his gameplan again this time. Indeed, Preston parked the bus, shall we say, towards the end of the game, but it was all for nothing.
Speaking after the game (via the Sunderland Twitter/X account), Le Bris offered his thoughts on the challenge Preston posed, and explained how his team managed to find a way to break down the low block.
He said: “It was a tough game against a team who likes to play indirect, many duels, balls in behind. We started well, created chances, enough to score but we were not efficient. We struggled to find the right balance in midfield with the new setup.
“I like the reaction at the end. We found the solution, because the opponent used the low block with players behind the ball.”
Sunderland did have more of the ball on the night (53% possession compared to the 47% for Preston), and the Black Cats generated a far higher xG (2.08 vs 0.79, as per SofaScore).
The problem is, Sunderland had four big chances, and failed to put them away. Instead, they had to rely on a wonder goal from Romaine Mundle, but that kind of thing can’t happen every week.
Why did Sunderland’s experiment not work?
For weeks now, Sunderland fans have been begging Le Bris to revert to a 4-4-2 and give Isidor and Mayenda the chance to shine together on the pitch.
Both strikers are in electric form right now, but for some reason, pairing them up against Preston last night just didn’t work. But, it wasn’t necessarily all down to the strikers.
Jobe Bellingham was anonymous in the middle of the park, Tommy Watson was probably thrown into the starting lineup too soon, while Patrick Roberts was also put straight back in despite coming off injured at the weekend.
Sunderland have a very small squad, especially with the injuries they’ve suffered this season. The players out on the pitch are clearly fatigued, but there’s not a lot Le Bris can do with the limited resources he has.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  Sheff UtdSheffield Utd | 37 | 24 | 7 | 6 | 52 | 28 | 24 | 77 |
| 2 |  LeedsLeeds | 36 | 22 | 10 | 4 | 72 | 23 | 49 | 76 |
| 3 |  BurnleyBurnley | 37 | 20 | 15 | 2 | 50 | 11 | 39 | 75 |
| 4 |  SunderlandSunderland | 37 | 19 | 12 | 6 | 55 | 34 | 21 | 69 |
| 5 |  West BromWest Brom | 37 | 13 | 17 | 7 | 47 | 33 | 14 | 56 |
| 6 |  CoventryCoventry | 37 | 16 | 8 | 13 | 52 | 48 | 4 | 56 |
It’s not ideal, but the players now need to rally together, pick themselves up, and power through these next few games to carry some momentum into the eventual play-off dates.
It may not have been the result fans wanted or expected, but Sunderland are now unbeaten in three, and positivity is key now moving forward.