For the love o Parky, please
Apiece in this column last week began with: “Once again we have to ask: why don’t Sunderland just attack?” It ended with: “Most supporters in the current woebegone circumstances would take any manner of victory, starting at Gillingham on Saturday.
“But when the bad results are stacking up anyway, wouldn’t Sunderland be better off trying to attack and entertain? It could hardly put them in worse form.”
There were some other words in between, but you get the gist of it. Well you’ll never guess what happened since.
Having failed to score in six of their previous seven away games in all competitions – and also registering zero shots on target in 120 minutes of “football” at Gillingham 18 days earlier – the solution was obvious. Play more defensively. What do I, or indeed a few tens of thousands of Sunderland supporters, know about football? Well we know that Sunderland lost without scoring: again.
Hoodathunkit? Five at the back seemed to make Sunderland even less attack minded. It blows your mind does that.
There were six changes to Sunderland’s starting XI. While everyone expected changes after a pitiful showing against Burton Albion, some of Saturday’s were frankly unaccountable, starting with the pointless swapping of goalkeepers.
Confined to the bench and destined to remain there were Duncan Watmore and Aiden McGeady. Serves them right for going forward.
Grant Leadbitter, yet to score since re-joining the club almost a year ago, was naturally retained, as was George Dobson, who has hit the net twice in his league career and, of course, goal machine Will Grigg.
An attacking midfielder, Chris Maguire, was eventually introduced. He failed to achieve anything in the 120 seconds he was given. Lazy. A third substitution was never made.
One of the perceived failings of Jack Ross was his negativity. It turns out he wasn’t negative enough apparently.
You can’t be too cautious w i s t s L
d i f s
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