Black Cats want to start life in the Championship on front foot
SIMON Grayson has signalled a change of approach next season, vowing Sunderland will be on the front foot in the Championship.
The Black Cats have spent the last five seasons battling for Premier League survival, spending much of that time fighting a rearguard action against largely superior teams.
Yet Sunderland’s relegation means they now have a different objective as they look to win promotion - and Grayson says that will mean taking the game to their opponents over the gruelling 46-game campaign.
New boss Grayson said of the players he inherited: “What you have are players who have probably played 90 per cent of their games in the Premiership and it is a different game there, it is a bit slower.
“You look at Sunderland last year, they probably spent most of their time without possession, so without it they are sort of just slotting into holes and gaps to stop the opposition.
“This year I don’t want to play like that, I want to show we have mobile players who will get up against people, win individual battles and second balls, because that is the nature of the Championship. Our players have to be mentally right for a tough slog, getting ready for the higher tempo.” With the exception of the home friendly with Celtic at the end of the month to mark the 20th anniversary of the move to the Stadium of Light, Sunderland’s pre-season has been designed around giving the players a taste of the type of football they will encounter in the Championship.
Wednesday’s opponents Livingston played a direct style similar to what Sunderland will face next term.
Grayson was pleased his side kept a clean sheet in the 3-0 win.
John O’Shea and Papy Djilobodji looked comfortable for the first hour, as did Lamine Kone and Tom Beadling for the last 30 minutes.
Grayson added: “It is something we have worked on and made the players aware of – you will get different styles, people will ask questions.”