Sunderland's current form is mediocre, but it can and must be turned around

Today at 01:00 AM

After a disappointing recent run, the Lads need to take advantage of the next two games to ensure they maintain their position at the heart of the promotion race.

It's perhaps a mark of Sunderland's current form that despite contributing plenty to an entertaining game at Bramall Lane on Friday night and suffering only our third loss of the campaign, it was hard to escape a feeling of deflation at the full time whistle, even after a display that was actually very good.

A goal from former Everton prodigy Tom Davies made the difference on the night, but during the first half in particular, we competed very strongly, with young starlet Tommy Watson turning in a superb performance.

Indeed, you couldn't help but wonder how things might've panned out had Wilson Isidor lined up our penalty instead of Patrick Roberts, after Watson was tripped as he burst into the hosts' box.

However, when all was said and done, Roberts' miss and Chris Mepham's red card were two of the main stories, and as the game was dissected late into the night, was it overly harsh to pore over a first league defeat in ten, or was it simply a result of raised expectations following the kind of start that few of us could've imagined would happen?

Fortunately, Leeds' defeat to Blackburn on Saturday added more weight to the argument that this season's Championship is more open than ever, and with Stoke City and Bristol City due on Wearside in the next week, we've got an excellent opportunity to emerge from this slump and reaffirm our promotion credentials.

For Régis Le Bris, a curious start to life on Wearside continues, and from the elation and excitement of overseeing a blistering start that catapulted us to the summit of the table, the Frenchman is now overseeing his first prolonged period of iffy form, with the Lads finding the going tougher and our football lacking the kind of spark that we saw earlier in the campaign.

In the first instance, and despite a smattering of harsh comments and grumblings on social media, I don't believe there's a real argument against Le Bris' position.

He rightly has credit in the bank from earlier in the season and his post-match comments about the need for a stronger mentality from his players weren't untrue.

That said, it's also fair to say that substitutions regularly being made when we're on the back foot, an increasingly laboured style of play, and a lack of cutting edge in promising positions are hindering us, and Le Bris needs to find the answers fairly swiftly.

Personally, I do feel that our wider squad could be utilised more effectively, not least to ease the workload on the players currently trying to turn our form around.

For example, in Adil Aouchiche and Abdoullah Ba, we have two players who could bring something different to the table. Aouchiche came on against the Blades but Ba remains persona non grata in terms of first team selection. A sign of stubbornness from Le Bris or merely of unswerving belief in his go-to players?

The question of our mentality (always a risky thing for a head coach to discuss publicly, but let's hope the players respond positively) becomes ever more pertinent when you consider recent results.

Poor game management cost us dearly against Coventry and Millwall, and our inability to unlock a well-drilled West Bromwich Albion side hinted at a side for whom it's not clicking as easily as it once was.

There's certainly nothing wrong that can't be fixed and wholesale changes aren't needed, but this is a key week in terms of resetting and ensuring that we head into the next swing of games with a positive mindset.

If expectations were raised on the early months of the season, you could hardly blame the fans, because there was a real buzz around the place on the back of what was happening on the pitch. That's definitely faded recently, but it's by no means terminal.

Scapegoating players at this stage is a fool's errand as well.

Roberts' quality, if not his ability to show it consistently, hasn't faded. Anthony Patterson isn't a walking mistake and Neil hasn't suddenly become a substandard player due to a handful of less-than-dominant performances. Remember earlier in the campaign when it was obvious that this was a unified team with full belief in what they were doing? Recapture that, and go from there.

After the struggles of last season, Le Bris' initial impact was incredibly positive, and now we're on the wrong side of a downturn in form.

A home clash with the Potters might be the kind of awkward affair that we might not relish, but for confidence, belief and momentum, we have to find a way of emerging from the game with a victory- even if it's not the most attractive game of football to watch.

An interesting two games lie ahead. Let's hope we can find the solutions.