Cats’ goal must be to hit the net more
Sunderland writer JACK Ross? Personnel? Tactics? Formation? Where does the blame lie?
Fans are searching for answers - and quick fixes - following Sunderland’s latest underwhelming draw.
A reason has to be identified, a culprit found, a change made.
Because a draw against lowly Oxford United? This cannot be allowed to happen!
Actually, it can happen. Ask second-placed Barnsley, who can consider themselves very fortunate to have fought back from 2-0 down to draw at the Kassam Stadium less than a fortnight ago.
Or third-placed Portsmouth, who lost 2-1 there a month ago.
Or how about fifth-placed Charlton, who were held 1-1 at home by the Us in October?
Or sixth-placed Doncaster Rovers, who had to settle for a point at home in December?
Or play-off hopefuls Peterborough United, who had to settle for a 2-2 draw at Oxford - also in December?
Whatever problems Oxford might have found picking up points against the sides lower down in the table - and it is that which is largely responsible for their struggle against relegation - in recent times teams at the top of the table have found they are no pushovers.
That said, Sunderland do not get a free pass here.
Their performance was very poor and a neutral observer would not have guessed they were the side sitting fourth while Oxford started the afternoon fourth-bottom.
Jimmy Dunne’s header - from a set-piece, no less, which made it a collectors’ item from the Black Cats’ point of view - gave them a first-half lead they scarcely deserved.
While there was acute frustration when substitute Marcus Browne equalised with just two minutes to go, the truth is on another day Sunderland could easily have lost this game - and they would have on Saturday had it not been for the brilliance of goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin.
Ross was strangely reticent about McLaughlin’s role when speaking post-match, perhaps because he did not want the narrative to be his goalkeeper had kept his side in the game.
However, I make no apologies for singing his praises - the Scot was Sunderland’s man of the match by a country mile. Sunderland’s problems lie at the other end of the pitch.
As I have written several times in recent weeks, they are scoring regularly but not freely.
£4m deadline-day signing Will Grigg could not provide an instant remedy on his debut, although it is very early days for a striker who was coming back from injury and had not played regularly for his former club Wigan this season.
Dunne’s goal continued their extraordinary record of scoring in every league game this season - but defensively they are not robust enough to protect a one-goal lead.
They need the cushion of a second goal but cannot score it and have now scored just a solitary counter in each of their last nine league games. They have also kept only eight clean sheets in 28 league games.
It is the combination of those two factors, rather than the manager, players, tactics or formation, which is hampering their promotion hopes.
The longer the game goes on without a second goal, the more the fear of conceding grows until it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
This was the fourth time in five league games Sunderland have had their noses in front only to be pegged back.
The Wearsiders now face a run of three home games.
The mood inside the Stadium of Light must be supportive because Sunderland are having a mid-season wobble and need all the help they can get.