Three consecutive defeats. Eight goals conceded in two car crash away performances (12 if you include the shambolic Portsmouth showing). Beleaguered Sunderland supporters are asking: what is going on?
Following a generally positive opening to the season where we played with a refreshing verve and flair, the wheels have well and truly come off. The current side, a pale shadow of their former selves, appears incapable of dealing with the predictable ‘up and at em’ approach of a typical third tier side.
Given the succession of dire performances, Lee Johnson has displayed an increasingly alarming reluctance to change his confidence sapped personnel. Following the embarrassing capitulation to Rotherham it was surprising in the extreme to see the same, sieve-like defence fielded against Sheffield Wednesday with the same hapless result.
And it’s not as though, Johnson does not have options. Following the generally positive recruitment of quality, Premier League youngsters over the summer, the manager is blessed with defensive options with highly rated youngsters such as Frederik Alves having excelled in the successful cup campaigns. Johnson has become fixated with fielding one side for the league and another for the cups.
I would argue, however, and the results have borne this out, that the sides being fielded in the cups are actually stronger than the league line-up. Alves, in particular, has been central to the impressive Carabao Cup performances. However, despite this, Alves remains in the cold when it comes to the league side.
This anachronism has become more glaring and exasperating as the league side have begun shipping goals like there is no tomorrow. The Danish U21 international must be wondering how bad things have to get before he gets a look in!
Following his latest calamitous defeat, Johnson, who appears to be rapidly losing the plot, reflected: “What do you do? Change the players? Maybe put another centre half in there?” Well yes of course you do, Lee!
For Sunderland’s failure weary fans this scenario feels all too painfully familiar – the rot sets in and we are left playing catch up for the rest of the season and end up scrapping in the lottery of the play-offs with particularly tragic results. Another re-run of this outcome this season would be completely unacceptable. Johnson must act now before it’s too late and another season slips away in oblivion.
