Sunderland’s players celebrated their 2–0 win over Wolves with a flurry of upbeat social media posts as Régis Le Bris’ side continued their stunning Premier League start
Sunderland’s squad took to Instagram to toast their 2–0 win over Wolves – another result that underlined the club’s superb start to life back in the Premier League under Régis Le Bris.
The Black Cats have been almost faultless at the Stadium of Light so far this season, collecting 10 home points – more than any other side in the division – and conceding just twice on Wearside, a defensive record bettered only by Arsenal. The latest victory lifted Sunderland onto 14 points from their opening eight matches, matching their best Premier League start since the 1999–00 campaign and setting a new benchmark for promoted teams since Wolves’ return to the top flight in 2018–19.
What makes Sunderland’s run even more impressive is how they’ve rewritten the narrative for newly promoted clubs. Last season, Southampton, Leicester and Ipswich combined for just 14 points between them at this stage – a total Le Bris’ side have already matched on their own. Their organisation, recruitment and belief have made a mockery of early predictions.
And with 40 points typically seen as the safety mark in the Premier League, Sunderland’s early return suggests survival may not just be achievable – it could arrive with room to spare. Club captain Granit Xhaka summed up the mood with a message of appreciation for supporters, writing: “Loving playing in this team, at this stadium, in front of these fans!” He also added the hashtag #GX34.
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Bertrand Traoré echoed that positivity, posting: “+3 in the bag, well done team #SAFC. Thanks, everyone, for the support.” His post was liked by Xhaka, who again showed leadership by engaging with his teammates online. Defender Dan Ballard, part of a defence that has now kept three home clean sheets this season, wrote: “Great fight from the lads today! Stadium was bouncing.”
Midfielder Chris Rigg, who impressed again in midfield, added: “So proud to be a part of this team, great win and plenty to build on.” Playmaker Enzo Le Fée kept his message short and focused, posting: “Job done.” And forward Wilson Isidor, whose early strike was ruled out for offside, captioned his post: “Back in style. Good weekend, Marras!”
Wolves boss takes aim at Sunderland after Premier League clash
Wolves manager Vitor Pereira questioned whether Sunderland’s display merited a 2–0 win at the Stadium of Light, suggesting the newly promoted side relied heavily on set pieces in their latest Premier League success.
The Black Cats dominated the opening period and took a deserved lead through Nordi Mukiele, before sealing the points late on when a Wolves defender turned into his own net from a corner. Pereira, however, was unimpressed by the style of the match and claimed both sides were below par in the first half.
“In my point of view, a poor first half from both teams,” Pereira said. “A lot of throw-ins to talk about. The first half, I need to talk about throw-ins, free kicks, and the time that we waste to do it. I don't see any game. I'm trying to remember what we did in the first half and what Sunderland did. The game was very poor, my opinion. This is my opinion.”
The Portuguese coach felt his side improved significantly after the break but lamented their wastefulness in front of goal. “Second half, for 30 minutes, we changed completely. We play in the way that we work every day, doing the movements, creating chances, playing with possession, keeping the ball, not allowing them to play because they create problems with the throw-ins and the free kicks. They create problems [from set plays], of course. This is part of the game, I'm not here to judge.
“We have 30 minutes with quality, three or four chances to score the goal, but we miss the chance. This is our problem, because we cannot miss in Premier League, we cannot miss this kind of chance. And in the last 15 minutes, we stop playing. We start to play long balls and long balls and long balls, and we stop playing. It means that the game was a poor game, in my opinion, and they score the second goal.”
Despite conceding that Sunderland capitalised on their opportunities, Pereira maintained that the result did not reflect the overall balance of play. “Today, we came with the intention to win the game, but we face a team playing at home. They are in a good moment with spirit, and in the end, 2–0 is painful because they didn't play the football to win 2–0 today. But they scored, and we missed the chance to score. That's why they won the game, and congrats to them.”
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