Sunderland’s next two fixtures are crucial, they could define the season for Regis Le Bris

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Sunderland are now six games without a win, and the pressure is on Regis Le Bris to get the Black Cats back on track as quickly as possible.

After a brilliant start to the season that had Sunderland at the top of the Championship table before the recent international break, Regis Le Bris has seen his side slip down the league of late.

Five draws in a row and then defeat to Sheffield United on Friday night leave the Black Cats in fourth place in the table after 18 games.

While Le Bris is not too concerned by this recent struggle, the Sunderland boss will need to find a winning formula soon, and he has a great opportunity to fix things in the next two games.

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Sunderland have to get back on track against Stoke City and Bristol City

Up next for Sunderland are home ties against Stoke City on Saturday, December 7, and Bristol City on Tuesday, December 10.

Hosting two midtable sides at the Stadium of Light can be the perfect remedy for Sunderland’s dip in form, especially if Sunderland get the desired result against Stoke next weekend, which would no doubt generate some buzz and momentum ahead of Bristol’s visit to the North East.

Le Bris needs to get his tactical decisions in order for those two games, and most importantly, his players need to find their shooting boots.

Sunderland have scored just three goals in their last six matches, including blanks in their last two. But, while the Black Cats are struggling in attack, Stoke City and Bristol City have problems at the other end of the pitch; they have conceded 22 and 21 goals respectively this season.

If the likes of Wilson Isidor and Aaron Connolly can’t find a way through those vulnerable defences, then Le Bris may have a bigger problem than first thought.

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Sunderland’s promotion push could be over by Christmas

The truth is, if Sunderland do not get back to winning ways soon, they will continue to spiral out of control and lose pace in their surprise promotion push.

This ‘difficult’ spell has already harmed Sunderland’s chances of a title challenge, and failure to beat two distinctly midtable sides like Stoke and Bristol would be a real turning of the tide moment, and could highlight the fact that the Black Cats are simply not ready for promotion just yet.

Looking further ahead, clashes with Norwich and Blackburn will really be a test of Sunderland’s credentials, and if they’re not in a more positive rhythm by then, Le Bris’ side will struggle against two of the most in-form teams in the league.

Sunderland are still very likely to make strong progress on last year’s disappointing 16th-placed finish, and Le Bris is clearly laying good foundations for his young squad. However, it would be very frustrating if they were unable to at least push for the play-offs this year after such a promising start to the season.