Sunderland are hoping to end their poor run of form at Bournemouth on Saturday
Régis Le Bris says Sunderland have been working hard this week to address the set piece issues that have crept into their game over recent weeks.
A strength of the side as they made a brilliant start to life in the Premier League, the Black Cats have struggled in both boxes of late and the issues have been central to the end of their unbeaten home run. Liverpool scored their winning goal from a corner, while Raul Jimenez scored Fulham’s crucial opener in a similar manner last weekend.
The Black Cats made set pieces a key focus of their preparations for life in the top tier, hiring James Brayne as a specialist coach and recruiting players capable of impacting the game in both boxes. Le Bris says there isn’t one specific reason Sunderland have started to struggle but said it showed the need to get back to the drawing board and evolve their approach.
“It's hard to say, but we worked hard this week about this topic,” Le Bris said.
“Not only because we faced a big problem, but we need to evolve as well as the staff. And when you reach a certain level and it's not enough, you have to work harder to reach the next level. First part: probably the opponent. They analyse our set-ups and they try to find the best way to threaten us. Dan Ballard, for example, is often targeted defensively and offensively, this is really clear.
“Our delivery wasn't really good against Fulham, so it's important to work on that as well. And probably we need to evolve sometimes to make it less unpredictable for the opponent, so it's an evolution.”
Régis Le Bris on Sunderland form and ‘staying calm’
Sunderland are going through their toughest run of the season, losing three league games in a row and facing two tough away games without a number of key players.
Le Bris says the club were prepared for a dip in form at some stage in the campaign and that he was confident his team will be better for the experience in the long run.
“We are going through a difficult run, which is not comfortable,” Le Bris said.
We don't like it, but it's part of the process. We are in a tough league, a newly promoted side, a young team with injuries, suspensions, different events. We expected that probably a bit earlier.
“It's not the best period from a result perspective, but for the foundations of the club, for the foundation of the team, we are learning a lot. I think it's often during these tough phases that you are learning more because you need to stick to your plan, you need to stick to your identity, to stay united, to stay calm and to work more. I think it's the case, even if the results are not positive.
“Sometimes we forget really quickly who we are, where we are as well. It's important to mention again our journey, how difficult is this league, how young is this squad. So many things in the same area, just to make sure that when it's negative, when it's the case for those results, it doesn't mean that we are not progressing, it doesn't mean that we are not in a good place according to our objectives, but it's tough and it's part of the process and you have to accept that.”
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