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Sunderland fell to a 5-0 defeat against Nottingham Forest on Friday night at the Stadium of Light
Régis Le Bris said Sunderland’s painful defeat to Nottingham Forest was a reminder of the demands of the Premier League.
Despite an open start to the game, Sunderland found themselves 4-0 down at the break having conceded three times from set pieces. Nottingham Forest outran and outfought the Black Cats in a dismal first half, with Elliot Anderson adding a fifth in stoppage time at the end of the contest.
Le Bris said his side were ‘naive’ in their approach building out from the back, and not intense enough all over the pitch.
“It hurts, it’s painful, and it’s a strong reminder about the level of the league, how demanding it is, and when we are not at the level expected, you get punished really quickly, because they have good players, they are well organised, they press well, they were really efficient on set pieces, and finally they killed us,” Le Bris said.
“We had this conversation at half-time, they were well organised to press us, they were good, and we tried to play under pressure, probably with a bit of naivety, because it wasn’t possible. So the game was really open, and we conceded fouls, and gave the opportunity to attack the box.
“Forest played with a high level of intensity, showed ‘we want to win’, it was a must-win for them. It wasn’t the case for us, it’s clear, because we were not intense enough in duels, not clean with the ball, making the right decisions under pressure, and the difference was big, and it’s just a consequence. So I repeat, it’s a strong reminder, we did well before, but today it wasn’t the case.”
Le Bris said the first half was like a ‘punch in the face’ for him and his players.
“It hurts, it’s painful, because it’s not the face we want to show, so for the players, I think it was like a punch in their face, and for me as well,” he said.
“After that, you can’t complain, you can’t look for excuses, you just have to go forward, and in the second half, this was our ambition, at least fight, at least show that you have a strong energy, you are proud to be a Sunderland player, and our fans were behind us, to be fair, so they were probably better than us today, and we tried to change the dynamic in the second half, we didn’t give up, which is the minimum.”
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