Match date: Sunday 09 March 2014.
Final Score: Hull City 3 – 0 Sunderland
Reflection…
I suppose this is the point in which I can use the age-old line, “At least we can concentrate on the league now”, eh…?!
Back down to earth with a big ‘ole bang for the Sunderland faithful that’s for sure.
Shockingly poor, pathetic, heartless, passionless, inept, clueless, sloppy, tooth-less; I could go on…
But I wont.
The heart, passion and commitment which was evident in the bucket full last weekend was, today, desperately lacking.
I am not one to criticise the manager on his team selection, but I felt even before the game that he may just have made a bit of a team selection blunder. Gus was saying in the press during the week that he was playing a full strength team, but upon seeing the team sheet, it was anything but really.
You can’t take players with the quality of Mannone, Brown, Alonso, Borini, Ki and Johnson out of a Sunderland side and expect there to be the same level of performance.
Leaving some of our big game players out of the starting line-up was a bold move to say the least. To be fair, regardless of the team selection, each and every player representing their club has a duty to perform to the best of his ability each and every game – it is the individual players who need to take a long, hard look at themselves.
For one instance, in my eyes Fletcher did not seem interested today in the least. This was the very type of game where we could have done with a physical presence in the shape of Altidore. Say what you will about the lad, but he is a handful for any defender to get to grips with; Fletcher was never in the game.
Simple.
Having had time to let the disappointment sink in, I honestly do think that had we started with the side which stated the cup final last weekend, the end result would have been different, but hey – it’s history now.
We must absolutely not point fingers at the manager. We absolutely must not seek excuses for such a display. We were second best all over the pitch, second to each loose ball, never a threat on goal… Just not good enough on the day.
We absolutely got what we deserved.
Reality bites…
League survival is the order of the day from this point forward, but we absolutely must up our game considerably if we have any intention of staying in the Premier League. Maybe Gus was a little too focussed on the Palace game next weekend, or maybe it was a general hang-over from the cup final… who knows.
It is the 4,000 + travelling faithful I feel for. They deserved better for their efforts.
We move on.
My Man Of The Match: No comment.
Next up – Crystal Palace at the SOL …
Chris
https://www.facebook.com/chrischambersadi/posts/10203234977015700?stream_ref=1