Nobody believed Sunderland could keep up their flying start - victory over Chelsea changes everything for Regis Le Bris' side
Chelsea 1-2 Sunderland (Garnacho 4’ | Isidor 22’, Talbi 90+3)
STAMFORD BRIDGE — As Chemsdine Talbi wheeled into the away end, “we’re going to win the league” ringing around Stamford Bridge, Sunderland marked the best start by a newly promoted Premier League side in 17 years.
The naysaying about their flying form has felt a little ungenerous. They did not generate their own fixture list. The suggestion had been that they hadn’t faced a half-decent side yet – that is no longer true.
The other thing to be said for Regis Le Bris, given the intransigence of so many of his Premier League contemporaries, is that he was happy to bet the house on a new system when the real tests began at Chelsea.
The back five
Nordi Mukiele has arguably been the best centre-back in the country this season. So the move to a back five for more defensive cover, shifting Mukiele to full-back, could have gone horribly wrong. Indeed it looked like it was about to when he was dazzled by Alejandro Garnacho’s stepovers in the build-up to Chelsea’s opening goal.
That the afternoon ended with Sunderland celebrating raucously in the away dressing room long after full-time says as much about Mukiele as anybody else. Le Bris can be confident of his side settling into the new formation in other trips away to the Big Six – not least because of the way Mukiele adapted.
He spent the rest of the first half acting as de facto captain, re-organising, engaging in frantic back and forths with Le Bris on the touchline. Dan Ballard came over to provide more cover, and Garnacho never again enjoyed such joy down that side.
Should Talbi start over Traore?
The other misstep which was eventually put right was the decision to once again start Bertrand Traore over Talbi. It was not Traore’s worst afternoon – his effort from Mukiele’s long throw caused pandemonium in Chelsea’s box, allowing Wilson Isidor to pounce for the equaliser, and he had a couple of other bright moments.
But after 65 minutes, he was hooked and cannot be sure of his place going forward, especially given Talbi’s impact. Le Bris seems content to let Traore do the leg work before making his subs, but the clamour for Talbi to get more minutes is only going to ramp up now.
Finding goals
Brian Brobbey is another curious case. Signed for £25m from Ajax, he is yet to start, precisely because Isidor can pop up with moments like that even when he’s quiet. Brobbey’s own moment in the sun came in his hold-up play for Talbi’s goal, keeping Tosin Adarabioyo at bay for six seconds before laying the ball off.
Sunderland's fans celebrate their second goal during the English Premier League football match between Chelsea and Sunderland at Stamford Bridge in London on October 25, 2025. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images)
Sunderland fans enjoyed every minute of the 284-mile journey home (Photo: Getty)
It’s the dynamics of that attack that Le Bris will still be mulling over. Sunderland have one of the lowest totals of shots created and have been outperforming their xG – the fear is that will eventually level itself out. In the top half, the only team scoring fewer is Newcastle.
January – and Afcon
At any rate, Le Bris is staying level-headed. He laughed off the joyous optimism of the supporters’ chants, insisting 40 points is still the aim.
Yet it is impossible not to revel in how quickly Sunderland have got it right. You only have to look at their play-off final opponents, Sheffield United, to see how differently this brave new world might have looked. The Blades embraced modernity and sit rooted in the second tier’s drop zone. By contrast, Sunderland’s forward-thinking, data-driven machine can be confident of making them even better if they can nail their January business.
It is all the more essential given they are losing seven players to Afcon, the most of any Premier League team. They are in a healthy position, at least, and can spend in the winter window. Their recruitment so far has worked like a rolling stone; once Granit Xhaka came through the door, he helped to lure other high-profile additions like Mukiele, who had been monitored by Liverpool.
That none of the top flight’s big guns fancied him at £9.5m is staggering, but typical of the way so many of Sunderland’s rivals have been left with faces blushing red and white. The Black Cats spent the summer outwitting others in the market and now they are outclassing them on the pitch. Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City and Bournemouth are up in the next five weeks – the season really starts now.
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