Sunderland have to pick themselves up after a disappointing draw to Bristol City in midweek, with a trip to Swansea on the way this weekend.
Despite dominating much of the game and creating a slew of chances in front of goal on Tuesday night, Sunderland were only able to scrape a draw in the dying moments against Bristol City at the Stadium of Light.
The result did preserve Sunderland’s unbeaten record at home this season, but on the balance of things, the Black Cats could and should have won the game.
Regis Le Bris now has to take his team to the Liberty Stadium to face a tricky Swansea side who have been creeping up the table slowly over recent weeks, but that prospect doesn’t faze him.
Swansea’s possession football will make it difficult for Sunderland
In his latest press conference (via the Sunderland YouTube channel), Le Bris discussed the exciting yet difficult challenge Swansea City pose to his Sunderland squad, and dismissed the idea that it will be a similar game to the one on Tuesday night.
He said: “Swansea is a different team [to Bristol City] because they like having the ball. They put high pressure on the ball carrier.
“It will be a tough game again but with a different style of play. New problems to solve. But I’m really excited for the game.”
We pinpointed Swansea’s brilliant possession statistics as a key reason Sunderland have to be wary on Saturday. Luke Williams’ side are second-best in the division in that metric this term, just behind Leeds United.
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A point away at Swansea would be a good result for Sunderland
Given Sunderland’s injury issues — the electric Tommy Watson is now ruled out for two months — and the fact Swansea have been really strong at home this season, a draw would probably be an acceptable result for the Black Cats this weekend.
While dropping points again is not ideal, and could see Sunderland lose further ground in the title race, we have to look at the bigger picture and recognise that simply avoiding defeat in tough away games like this is key.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 1 |  Sheff UtdSheffield Utd | 20 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 28 | 11 | 17 | 42 |
| 2 |  LeedsLeeds | 20 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 36 | 14 | 22 | 41 |
| 3 |  BurnleyBurnley | 20 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 24 | 7 | 17 | 38 |
| 4 |  SunderlandSunderland | 20 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 29 | 15 | 14 | 37 |
| 5 |  BlackburnBlackburn | 19 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 23 | 17 | 6 | 34 |
| 6 |  West BromWest Brom | 20 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 23 | 14 | 9 | 32 |
A point would see Sunderland stay in fourth place in the Championship table for now, and would keep some semblance of momentum going as we head into the festive period.
In truth, anything but losing this game would have to be seen as a respectable outcome for Sunderland, and Swansea cannot be underestimated at all.