Frustration and apprehension is building ahead of next Sunday’s pivotal North East derby after Sunderland’s unbeaten record was brutally dismissed at the Etihad.
Sunderland were severely dominated by Roberto Mancini’s men and their 7 points total for the season looks more modest, now it is now longer representative of an unbeaten team.
The major annoyance surrounding the Black Cats this term is how little they’ve been able to depend on their most influential players.
Through no fault of his own, inspirational signing Adam Johnson, has yet to match the expectations of his invigorating summer deal. Facing his old club there was great hope that the England international would inspire his new side, but a weak frail version of the 25 year old was roped off with just over 20 minutes to go. The former Middlesbrough man was violently sick in his return Eastlands with a stomach problem.
The injury and comedown summed up the beginning of Johnson’s stay on Wearside. The winger had been given the big billing before the game returning to the club where he claimed to be wronged in terms of how little first team opportunities he got. Expecting a backlash, it was dumbfounding to discover he was throwing up prior to full-time in a comfortable 3-0 loss. With one good performance from three league starts, still fit enough for England duty there will be no excuses ahead of the North East derby.
Stephane Sessegnon was Sunderland’s marquee player prior to Johnson’s arrival and penned offered a new lucrative extension at the North East club. However this season the Benin international has looked a shadow of his former self. Previous performances could be forgiven due to the 28 year old’s failure to contribute in pre-season, had left him short on fitness, but now in mid-October that excuse has wore thin. The one smear on the diminutive forward’s 2011/2012 term was a sending off at the Sports Direct Arena, next week Sessegnon must seek redemption.
Another player of the season of the candidate Sebastian Larsson looked lost in the middle of the park and must force himself to stay relevant in Martin O’Neill’s plans after the arrival of Johnson. James McClean has been a major disappointment with the winger looking one-dimensional and easy to deal with now he is no-longer an unknown commodity. The Irishman also put needless extra pressure on himself with his Twitter rant, criticising Giovani Trapattoni.
Manchester City exposed the limitations of Sunderland’s defence, a major fear considering the opposition that the Wearsiders have met this season have rarely had attacks of the standard of Hatem Ben Arfa, Papiss Cisse and Demba Ba. Lee Cattermole’s tenacity in defence and ability to inspire and lead Sunderland in defensive efforts was sorely missed against Manchester City. While Cattermole improves the Sunderland team, fans have a right to feel aggrieved at the midfielder’s inability to keep his temperament in check.
A morale boosting or sapping exercise, next week’s derby could go a long way to shaping O’Neill’s first full season in charge of Sunderland. Steve Bruce now admits that the writing was on the wall after commencing the season with a home defeat to the Toon Army. The Ulsterman will need big performances from his best players to avoid a similar fate on October 21.
