Sunderland are back in action tomorrow night against Sheffield Wednesday, giving them the perfect opportunity to find their form again after a bad couple of weeks.
The Black Cats have lost their last two matches, falling to defeat against Hull City at the weekend, and league leaders Leeds United before that.
Those results have seen Regis Le Bris’ side slip away from the automatic promotion race, and the Sunderland players have been criticised for their efforts at the weekend.
But, the Sunderland manager is in high spirits ahead of the upcoming fixture against Sheffield Wednesday, and he thinks fans should be, too.
Regis Le Bris has got the reaction he wanted from Sunderland players
Speaking to the press (via the Sunderland YouTube channel), Le Bris was asked about how his players reacted in the wake of the Hull City defeat, and the Frenchman insisted he has seen everything he had hoped to see from the Sunderland squad in training.
He said: “Yes, we got that reaction… When you lose sometimes, emotion can drive different solutions or ideas about, not just yourself, but the referee, the opponent, maybe we were unlucky or it was an error from someone else.
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“The atmosphere after the game was really positive, not that we enjoyed defeat but we managed the situation properly. The three sessions this week have been intense, the output wasn’t always perfect but the behaviour and commitment were very positive.
“I think we worked well, now the most important thing is how we play tomorrow.”
Whether that hard work can lead to the right outcome on Friday remains to be seen. Pundits can’t separate the two teams ahead of the game, and perhaps that extra intensity from Sunderland will make all the difference.
Sheffield Wednesday clash is make-or-break for Sunderland
Le Bris has some big decisions to make with his Sunderland lineup versus Sheffield Wednesday, not only to deal with the injuries his team have suffered, but to combat the threat from a ‘nasty’ opponent eager to get revenge after the reverse result back in August.
There are plenty of ways Sunderland can hurt Wednesday, of course, but they will have to be wary of the Owls and the dangers they pose on the counter-attack.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  LeedsLeeds | 34 | 22 | 9 | 3 | 71 | 21 | 50 | 75 |
| 2 |  Sheff UtdSheffield Utd | 34 | 22 | 6 | 6 | 48 | 26 | 22 | 70 |
| 3 |  BurnleyBurnley | 34 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 43 | 9 | 34 | 68 |
| 4 | SunderlandSunderland | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 50 | 31 | 19 | 62 |
| 5 |  West BromWest Brom | 34 | 12 | 15 | 7 | 44 | 31 | 13 | 51 |
| 6 |  BlackburnBlackburn | 34 | 15 | 6 | 13 | 39 | 34 | 5 | 51 |
Losing back-to-back games is something Sunderland had not done all season, and they also lost their unbeaten home record at the Stadium of Light, too. Not ideal, by any means, but not a disaster just yet.
Losing three on the bounce, however, would be incredibly damaging for Sunderland, not just in terms of the immediate impact of dropping more points, but for the harm it would do to the Black Cats’ spirit, mentality, and momentum heading into such a crucial phase of the season.