AFCON has been like the ghost at the feast, a malevolent presence, hovering in the background, sucking at least some of the enjoyment from everything Sunderland have been doing.
Well, the tournament is now here. The Black Cats were without five first-team regulars as they played their final away game of the year at Brighton on Saturday, a tally that now rises to six, with Habib Diarra linking up with the Senegal squad after proving his fitness with a second-half substitute appearance at the Amex.
Did the world fall apart? Not exactly. Yes, Regis Le Bris had to shuffle things around to plug the gaps created by the absence of Reinildo Mandava, Noah Sadiki, Chemsdine Talbi and Bertrand Traore, and yes, Sunderland’s attacking output was probably diminished slightly as a result.
Defensively, the Black Cats were as good as ever though, and for all the fears around a lack of sufficient squad depth, Le Bris was not only able to put out a functioning starting XI at the weekend, he was also able to name a bench featuring the likes of Dennis Cirkin, Dan Neil, Romaine Mundle, Eliezer Mayenda and Wilson Isidor. Tales of Sunderland’s inevitable AFCON demise appear to have been somewhat overexaggerated.
“First of all, we won 26 points before AFCON, which is important,” said Le Bris, after his side made it to the 27-point mark courtesy of their battling draw with Brighton. “That is a really big achievement. Now, we are going into a different phase of the season, and it is obvious that things will be a little less composed because we will have less players to choose from.
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“The players who didn’t play so far will need time to step up. We trust their quality and their mindset, but you can’t just switch on and be straight at the level. We have to give them opportunities. They will need time, but today they showed they were consistent and ready to go.”
In many ways, that was the most important message Sunderland could deliver on Saturday. Business as usual. Changed in terms of the line-up and formation, although Le Bris was hardly wedded to one group of players or one system when he had his whole squad available. But still the same Sunderland that have made such an impressive return to the top-flight.
The core of the defence that has been their bedrock all season remains intact, with Robin Roefs standing behind a back four featuring Nordi Mukiele, Dan Ballard and Omar Alderete, all of whom have been solid and reliable performers so far. Trai Hume has had to move across to left-back to cover for the absent Reinildo, but that is hardly a radical repositioning given that the Northern Irishman has switched flanks on a number of occasions already in the last two seasons.
With Lutsharel Geertruida’s versatility meaning a move to a defensive-midfield position is hardly a major issue either, there is no reason why Sunderland should suddenly start shipping goals in the next month or so, when their African players are away.
They barely gave Brighton a sniff of a chance on Saturday, with Alderete and Ballard dominating in the air as Geertruida successfully shut off the supply line to Brighton’s attackers. Yasin Ayari should perhaps have done better when he blazed over late on, but this was another afternoon when Roefs was never seriously threatened.
“We stayed consistent with our deep block and kept this clean sheet,” said Le Bris. “They crossed a lot, as expected, so we were prepared for that. We have players who are really determined to defend the box and the goal, and they did that. They defended well.”
Sunderland were less effective at the other end, and improving his side’s attacking output will be Le Bris’ biggest challenge as he heads into the festive home games against an in-form Leeds United and an even more in-form Manchester City.
Alderete almost scored with a header that Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen tipped onto the crossbar, but not for the first time this season, Sunderland’s threat from set-pieces was significantly greater than anything they were able to muster from open play.
Chris Rigg, restored to the starting side on the right-hand side, was anonymous in an attacking sense for much of the game, while Simon Adingra, stationed on the opposite flank, failed to build on the flashes of promise he displayed in the first half. The former Brighton winger’s race had long been run by the time he was substituted just after the hour mark.
“I still believe he [Adingra] has a good margin [to improve], and hopefully we will exploit that soon because he will have opportunities to step up,” said Le Bris. “He needs time and confidence.”