From invincible to indecisive in the space of two league games
If Sunderland’s narrow loss to Liverpool — a result that ended what had been a magnificent unbeaten home record for 2025/2026 — could be caveated by the fact that it came at the hands of the reigning champions and in particular the brilliant Florian Wirtz, Sunday’s loss to the efficient if hardly world-beating Cottagers was harder to fathom.
It was also more concerning and seemed to offer more proof that as of right now, the Lads look to have shot their bolt and appear in danger of limping rather
than sprinting down the stretch towards the end of the season.
For the purposes of efficiency, I’ll keep this brief: Sunderland were dismal on Sunday, turning in a performance that was disjointed, riddled with nerves and indecision, and marked by the concession of two goals in particular that were ludicrously soft — Raul Jiménez’s opener and Alex Iwobi’s decisive third.
Quite what went wrong is anyone’s guess, but for large parts of this game, the same players who’ve performed admirably for much of the season looked like shadows of their regular selves, and that’s a major concern.
You might point to injuries suffered by Nordi Mukiele and surprise starter Jocelin Ta Bi, or perhaps an erratic refereeing display as factors, but the Lads simply didn’t hit the standards they’ve set for themselves — and it’s not unreasonable to highlight that.
With trips to Bournemouth and Leeds United on the horizon, Sunderland need to get smarter, harder, faster, nastier and much more cohesive if they’re to arrest this slump and prevent the questions from mounting.
It can be done — and it needs to be.
Romaine Mundle cops the flak, but let’s look at the bigger picture
The former Standard Liege winger was linked with a move away from Wearside in January, and you wonder whether such a move would’ve been beneficial — not least for his own mental wellbeing as well as his footballing development as he’s fallen victim to harsher and more frequent criticism than many of his teammates, some of whom are equally unproductive in key areas at this stage.
His second half miss was poor and it’s fair to say that a little more composure at the key moment would’ve seen us in with a real shout of taking something from the game as Enzo Le Fée gave us brief hope with his penalty, but Mundle seemed to rush his attempt on goal and the sight of the ball sailing horribly wide was the game in microcosm: one of those moments that can go either way and on this occasion, it didn’t work out.
I don’t think it’s fair to single him out and it certainly wasn’t the sole reason we lost. Moving forward, he needs to somehow find the resilience and the confidence to keep pressing on — something with which Régis Le Bris and his teammates will doubtless be trying to help him.
Furthermore, the racist abuse to which Mundle was subjected on Sunday is a stain on the game and should be dealt with firmly. It is a disgrace that in 2026, footballers are still being forced to deal with such attacks and I really hope the red and white community can unite and take a stand against it.
Régis Le Bris’ faces some tricky calls in the coming weeks
It can’t be prevented — even if, in my view, speculation about the head coach’s position is ridiculously premature and perhaps reactionary — but after overseeing a third consecutive league loss and with Sunderland not resembling the unified, abrasive and hard-to-beat team of earlier in the season, Le Bris has some puzzles to solve as he seeks to turn around our stuttering form and ensure that this season of promise doesn’t fizzle out.
An injury suffered by Brian Brobbey may well open the door for Wilson Isidor, whilst the makeup of Sunderland’s midfield and wingers will doubtless be considered carefully.
It feels like a good bet that Chemsdine Talbi will find himself firmly in contention for the clash with Bournemouth, whilst Granit Xhaka’s return to fitness will also be a welcome boost, but there currently seems to be a little bit of muddled thinking regarding selection and tactics, so it’s fair to say that Le Bris faces a key week ahead of the long trip to the south coast.
Early leavers in the spotlight once again
Win, lose or draw, I never leave the stadium before the full time whistle blows but Sunday’s mass exodus with over ten minutes of the game remaining was a stark reminder that Sunderland’s supporters are still attending matches with a limited amount of tolerance, and the sight of swathes of empty seats as the game wound down wasn’t the most heartening for a club that’s placed so much emphasis on the motto ‘Til The End.
This isn’t new, of course, as the Stadium of Light has regularly emptied at a rapid rate before full time during its three-decade history, but we seem to be no closer to reaching a consensus on why it happens and what — if anything — can be done to discourage it.
I’ve always been firmly of the belief that once you’ve paid your money, you have a right to leave at whatever time you choose — regardless of the scoreline — without being vilified or castigated, but for the players, it can’t be easy to play out the final stages against the backdrop of red and white plastic as opposed to a packed stadium.
Perhaps this is just how it is. Sunderland fandom has always been an emotionally fraught experience and maybe this was just one of those particularly galling afternoons. Can it be changed? I have my doubts.
