A lot has unravelled since the players last laced up their boots for Premier League action: from some of the squad rendezvousing in Dubai and London, Lutsharel Geertruida turning on a sixpence (on the M6, not on the pitch) after a touted move to Liverpool, and a flurry of movement at the arrival gate and departure lounge at Woolsington Airport.
With several of our Wembley heroes, including two of our own in Dan Neil and Anthony Patterson heading for pastures new, it has been a week of change on Wearside,
and seeing some much-loved faces heading for the exit — while part and parcel of football and our lofty aspirations — always touches a nerve.
So, it was refreshing to refocus our attention on the on-pitch happenings as the Stadium of Light played host to Monday Night Football, as we looked to get back to winning ways against a Burnley side who were winless in the league since the start of November… and we made them look just like a team who hadn’t tasted victory in 14 outings, too.
In what was a bitterly cold north-easterly evening, we dominated from the very first whistle, taking us just nine minutes to warm the place up thanks to Habib Diarra, whose strike took a fortuitous deflection off Axel Tuanzebe before wrong-footing Martin Dubravka to open the scoring.
We offered Burnley no reprieve after breaking the deadlock, with Enzo Le Fée pulling the strings in the middle of the park. Our French playmaker was in inspired form once again, carving the Clarets open as and when he pleased.
While we, of course, have to caveat our sublime performance and result with the level of the opponent, Sunderland made it look easy. We stroked it around with supreme confidence, with Le Fée, Diarra, and Chemsdine Talbi often seemingly playing rondo between themselves.
We knocked it around with a real freedom, and saw the flair that our playing squad are capable of producing in abundance. I have the utmost respect and trust in Le Bris tactically, and he got it spot on again here. Our coolly reticent boss demonstrated his faith in his players. And as Neil Warnock would say, we enjoyed it, but we enjoyed it by being disciplined.
Any hint of offensive impetus from Burnley was snuffed out with little fuss, as our defensive unit stood firm when called upon, leaving Robin Roefs to ponder what he’d want for tea, and whether he’d remembered to take the bins out.
While Diarra’s first was actually awarded to Tuanzebe, it wasn’t any coincidence that he was the one finishing off Mukiele’s cross to double our lead, with the midfielder preemptively positioning himself to knock past Dubravka. If it’s impossible to be out of sight at 2-0 on the half-an-hour mark, then we were only visible to Burnley via a microscopic lens.
The second half was much more of the same. Burnley saw a little more of the ball and with it, more territory, but with Dan Ballard heading anything and everything, they were no closer to reducing the arrears.
Brian Brobbey was denied by Dubravka from close range as we pushed for a third, and just moments later we got just that. A moment of sheer, unadulterated brilliance from Talbi who took two players on before unleashing a spectacular curling effort that cannoned in off the crossbar. As aesthetically pleasing a goal as you’ll see, the left winger’s strike was the pick of the bunch, and one of our goals of the season so far.
On a side note, is there anything Brobbey couldn’t hold up? He carried the weight of Maxence Lacroix against Crystal Palace, and seemed to outmuscle Burnley’s back five here. What’s more, if he isn’t scoring himself he’s ensuring he’s creating space so others can.
After the game, Talbi and Sadiki epitomised the mentality instilled in this current crop of players during their post-match interview. “We want to reach the top,” Talbi reiterated. “It’s never enough,” said Sadiki.
There’s this inner belief amongst the squad that we can break into the top six come the end of the season, and with performances like that, we couldn’t, could we?
