On This Day (23 November 2008) The end is nigh for Keane as Sunderland lose again!

Yesterday at 01:00 AM

Defeat at the hands of West Ham was another step towards the end of the Irishman's tenure as Sunderland boss, as our poor form continued against Gianfranco Zola's side

Significant pressure was beginning to mount on Sunderland and manager Roy Keane after the team's fourth defeat in five games.

Despite beating Newcastle United just under a month ago, our form had been plummeting before that win and questions were beginning to be asked about the team's lack of goals and lack of creativity, as well as our sloppiness at the back, with a 5-0 defeat to Chelsea also on the run.

Only 35,222 - Sunderland's lowest home attendance of the season - turned up to witness a game in which a deflected goal by Valon Behrami made the difference. Both sides were below par, although Sunderland's lack of creativity was a glaring issue, considering we had both Kenwyne Jones and Djibril Cisse.

Behrami's shot took a deflection off Kenwyne Jones to beat our stranded keeper Marton Fulop, and whilst we had a considerable amount of possession, the lack of chances created was an issue.

After we conceded, we should've equalised almost immediately when an Andy Reid cross found Cisse unmarked in front of goal, but he planted his header wide.

In the second half, Sunderland's attacks became increasingly desperate and the West Ham backline comfortably coped with our hopeful crosses from deep.

Cisse in particular was guilty of scuppering countless opportunities, with Steed Malbranque the most impressive player on the pitch before he was replaced by Carlos Edwards with twenty minutes to go.

Despite pressure, a goal never arrived and Gianfranco Zola's team held on relatively comfortably to win the game. It was another defeat for Keane and his team, and murmurings began to circulate that his future may be brought into question.

Around this time, talks surrounding a new contract for Keane were being mooted, with Niall Quinn telling the media that a new deal wasn't far away.

Coincidentally (or not), the delay in Keane signing the deal coincided with the arrival of Ellis Short, who'd invested heavily in the club.

With this all happening, the fans started to connect the dots and began to realise that it might've been conceivable that Keane may be on his way out- although Quinn stated in the media that there was nothing to worry about.

A big thing has been made of it (Keane's contract) but we always said it wasn't a big issue for us. What is the point of having a last year of a contract if you have to sign a new one before it ends?

We always envisaged starting to talk around Christmas but because the issue is mentioned such a lot, I have just opened discussions about keeping him.

Typical of Roy, he has been keen over the last month to find out exactly where the business is going over the next two years.

We are putting stuff together; showing what kind of investment the owners can put in. That is what Roy wants to satisfy himself with.

He is not asking for big lumps of money. He is asking where the club is going- not just in the next window but for the next few windows.

Once Roy is happy that we're all on the same journey, I think he is going to be around for a long time.

Back to the game, and Keane lamented the lack of opportunities that the team created throughout the game.

We had good opportunities, put good balls in the box, so frustration would be a good word to describe how we feel.

It's especially frustrating when you give teams a helping hand from the point of view of the goal we gave away.

We don't score too many so when you're a goal behind it's going to be a tough afternoon.

We made it hard for ourselves, but don't we always?

We had a good opportunity today but we failed to take it – we'll have to kick on again next week.

With another defeat, the pressure was rising and boiling point wasn't far away. Six days later, the team completely capitulated at home to Bolton Wanderers in a 4-1 defeat which proved to be Keane's final game in charge.

23 November 2008

Barclays Premier League

Stadium of Light

Attendance: 35,222

Sunderland 0

West Ham United 1 (Behrami 20')

Sunderland: Fulop, Bardsley, Nosworthy; Ferdinand, Collins, Malbranque (Edwards 66'); Whitehead, Reid (Murphy 66'), Richardson; Jones (Diouf 81'), Cisse

Subs Not Used: Colgan, Tainio, Colback, Henderson

West Ham: Green, Neill, Collins; Upson, Ilunga, Faubert (Boa Morte 76'); Parker, Bowyer (Mullins 61'), Behrami; Bellamy (Di Michele 87'), Cole

Subs Not Used: Lastuvka, Davenport, Collison, Sears