Sunderland will play in the Europa League next season after one of the best days in the Stadium of Light’s history
Sunderland secured a seventh-place finish and a place in next season’s Europa League with a win against Chelsea at the Stadium of Light on Sunday.
Phil Smith was there reporting for The Echo and these were his key conclusions…
Sunderland save their very best for last
This was one of the biggest parties the Stadium of Light has ever seen, but it’s also worth reflecting on just how good a team performance this was. The last time Sunderland played here, they were comfortably the better side against Manchester United and lacked only the finishing touch to take all three points.
Perhaps after beating Liverpool and securing Champions League qualification Michael Carrick’s side were lacking a little intensity and motivation that day, and this was very clearly the case with Chelsea here. They didn’t look like a side who had much desire to play in the Conference of Europa League next season, producing a wretched performance aside from one or two flashes of inspiration from Cole Palmer. That shouldn’t take away from how good Sunderland were, however, and how quickly they are developing as a side tactically and in possession.
They bullied Chelsea for much of the first half, winning duels and forcing errors with the intensity of their pressing. They also played the better, more fluid football. Anticipating Marc Cucurella would threaten but leave space behind him, Régis Le Bris encouraged Trai Hume to drift infield and play as an additional midfielder. More often than not Chelsea didn’t know who to pick up, with Enzo Le Fée bursting into the space in the channel. At times Geertruida drifted infield, at times Sadiki doubled up as a second winger and at times Le Fée could be found picking up the ball off the back four. Sure, Sunderland had nothing to lose and there was no reason not to attack this game with a bold game plan but there are clear signs that this is a team moving firmly in the right direction.
The Europa League campaign is going to impact Sunderland and there will be days where fatigue gets the better of them, but they are a better, more complete Premier League side than they were on the opening day of the campaign. Who knows how far this group can go if they play like this?
Sunderland’s poor XG stats over the course of the campaign were inevitably discussed once again after their Europa League place was confirmed but that now only tells a small part of the story. Across those games against Man Utd and Chelsea Sunderland have generated an XG of 2.89 and conceded just 1.51. This is a proper team.
Trai Hume justifies the faith of his head coach once more
At the end of the campaign, only Le Fée and Robin Roefs played more minutes than Trai Hume. A stalwart of the club’s rise from League One, Hume has once again performed superbly across a number of different positions this season.
His role on the right wing has been one of the few sources of contention in recent weeks with some fans craving a more attacking selection in that position, but Le Bris emphatically set out his stall in his pre-match press conference on Friday. He outlined how important Hume had been to the team’s good form in that position, explaining how he had managed to help create the control from which Sunderland had played some of their best attacking football of the season. Though he conceded the final third isn’t the strongest part of Hume’s game, he pointed out that he still offers plenty going forward. Those words proved prophetic: Hume seizing his moment with a first-time volley to set Sunderland on their way. Picking up that narrow position, he also was at the heart of so many attacks including for the second goal that proved so crucial.
One of the great Sunderland tweets - after the opening goal the Fantasy Premier League account posted: Sunderland 1-0 Chelsea. GOAL: Hume. ASSIST: O’Nien.
Both have been vital to Sunderland’s success this season, performing on the pitch and protecting the culture that brought the club back to the very top. In this win, they also underlined how vital they will be next season with an expanded fixture schedule.
Le Bris also answers a key criticism in strong finish
Sunderland’s strong end to the season is also a big win for the head coach. That his team have often dipped in the second half of the season has been a concern for many fans but here Sunderland have consistently produced key wins since securing their Premier League safety. When the teams around them have slowed down and run out of steam, Sunderland have gone again.
It’s credit to the ambition in the dressing room, where the players clearly targeted history when it would have been so easy to look towards the summer. It’s also credit to the head coach, who has found solutions and new ideas to freshen things up when required.
May 24th: Sunderland day
Le Bris is exceptionally good at managing his emotions but even he couldn’t suppress a broad smile in the hour that followed full time. From the pitch to the press conference room, he grinned and spoke of his pride at the journey the club has been on since he took charge.
Exactly one year on from that Wembley win, Sunderland secured European football for the first time since 1973. May 24th, Le Bris said, was a special day in his life. On that, he is far from alone. It’s basically a Sunderland holiday now, the anniversary of not just one but now two of the greatest days most have ever had following the club.
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