Sunderland stars took to Instagram after the 3-0 win over West Ham, sharing pride, banter and fan praise
Sunderland’s dream return to the Premier League sparked a wave of social media reaction on Saturday night – with several players sharing their pride and excitement after the 3-0 win over West Ham United at the Stadium of Light.
In front of 46,233 fans, the Black Cats produced a dominant second-half performance as goals from Eliezer Mayenda, Dan Ballard and Wilson Isidor secured the perfect start to life back in the top flight. And after the final whistle, the squad took to Instagram to reflect on the occasion.
Noah Sadiki posted a close-up image of himself in action at the Stadium of Light and wrote: “Amazing first feeling in the PL, fantastic result from the team and an outstanding support from the fans today. Onto the next one ✅🕵🏿♂️” His post has already been liked over 3,000 times, with more than 100 comments, including a reply from teammate Chris Rigg, who jokingly wrote: “KAT SLATER 😂😍.”
Simon Adingra also shared his emotions after his first league appearance, posting a photo alongside Sadiki with the caption: “What an atmosphere! 🤝 Haway the lads ⏳ #allonsdelavant.” The winger’s post quickly went viral among Sunderland fans, attracting over 14,500 likes and 126 comments, including replies from Sadiki and Reinildo, who both responded with strings of fire emojis.
Trai Hume, meanwhile, marked his long-awaited Premier League debut with a simple but powerful post. Uploading an image of himself in full flight against West Ham, he captioned it: “Premier League debut.” His post drew more than 7,200 likes and saw replies from young teammate Chris Rigg, who added a clapping emoji, and plenty of fans congratulating him on his journey from the Championship to the top flight.
The engagement across the squad’s social media pages mirrored the noise at the Stadium of Light itself, where Sunderland fans celebrated long into the evening after the club’s emphatic top-flight return and first Premier League win for over 3,100 days.
What did Régis Le Bris say after Sunderland vs West Ham?
Head coach Régis Le Bris hailed Sunderland’s players after their 3-0 victory over West Ham United but warned that humility and togetherness must remain central to their Premier League campaign.
The Black Cats returned to the top flight in style on Saturday, with second-half goals from Eliezer Mayenda, Dan Ballard and Wilson Isidor sealing their first Premier League win in over eight years.
Le Bris was delighted with the way his players responded to half-time instructions after a challenging first half and praised their ability to execute the gameplan. He also revealed that captain Granit Xhaka addressed the squad post-match to stress the importance of staying united.
“I'm happy for the fans and the players and the club,” Le Bris said. “We had different phases of pre-season and we spoke about the layers we needed to add. It was obvious that it starts from the foundations – we showed that the team is working well.
He added: “They were hard to beat in a mid to low block. The first half was a bit more difficult but during the second half we felt we could get opportunities through regains in the middle and that we could score through counter attacks.
“We didn't change many important things at half time. We spoke a bit about their goalkeeper restarts and our high press, we went for man for man and they found two or three opportunities with long balls. So it was really important to be strong in duels. We made just two or three little decisions, and it made a difference.”
Le Bris was also keen to highlight that Sunderland’s three goals came from players who were already at the club last season, despite a summer of heavy recruitment. “It's really important for two reasons, they showed they can step up [first and foremost],” he said.
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“We'll see later, but today it was the case. And it's really important because they keep the identity of the club and the way we worked last season. We built this strength about togetherness, the way we work as a team. The players worked well as a team and they showed that again today.”
The Frenchman added that while the opening-day victory was a proud moment for everyone connected to the club, Sunderland would remain focused on the long campaign ahead.
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