Match Day Thread Sunderland AFC v Saudi State FC - FA Cup 3rd Round – Saturday 6th January 2024 - KO 12:45

We were over run and it could and should have been avoided, our boys did everything they could , and don't deserve the abuse they are getting on here. The blame if there is any lies elsewhere.

 

I agree a couple of dodgy moments but overall a good game. Did himself no harm at all. Definitely a player we could take into the Premier league.

 

The disturbing thing for me is where we are as a squad… we have an incredibly talented young squad… but maybe not as good as thought they were at 12:45 today

 

In fairness to me I did predict that as a problem yesterday

 

Finely someone who makes sense

 

Too many players that didn't turn up, Clarke, Bellingham, Ekwah the main ones. Pritchard and Rusyn ran their arses off and had no support. It was crying out for a change in midfield and Beale didn't make it. I would've took Ekwah and Bellingham off and put Ba and maybe Rigg. Not even being able to make really passes didn't help like!

 

The gulf in class was huge, I expected a defeat but not as easily as that. Some of the lads seemed to freeze early in the game but that’s down to experience, we don’t have it.
Comparing us to the mags as a gauge for the premiership is silly though, we would be competing with the bottom 6 but we are still woefully short for even the bottom 6.
I’m not as gutted as I normally am after a derby defeat and I can only put that down to my expectations, concentrate on making the play offs now and hopefully KLD seen how much we are lacking today

 

Feel happier about this defeat than some of the league games .
We scraped the bar and made the keeper make one good safe. Otherwise didn’t threaten their goal . They flashed a shot by the post twice. Otherwise didn’t threaten our goal . It was 3-0 . We scored one for them , late Xmas present to them for one and a penalty. They were faster , quicker to the ball , stronger and had most possession- what you’d expect from ££££££’s and experience. Don’t know the possession figures , but theirs would be less had we not handed so much to them with bad passing and losing the ball - fair enough , their quality may have pushed us to be so lax .
Happy though with our boys (literally) and they will have gained so much from it . And happy that even though the mags are celebrating, it really can’t be as good a celebration as we had 6 times over

 

Only player who ran at them was Ba. Not once did any of our players, other than Pritchard in moments, show any real confidence on the ball.

Once again way too narrow. Burn and Trippier have looked shaky all season and we decide to play Pritchard on the right and then Clarke was playing 10 yards infield. Why?

Full backs way too negative. Hume had opportunities in the first half to put the ball in the box but we pass sideways and backwards constantly.

Why are we insisting on playing out from the back against a very good pressing team?

To top it off, got accused of being a mag in the ground and had to 'prove myself'. ****ing ridiculous.

****e day and one to be forgotten quickly.

 

Just accept yous are the baddies man!

 

Irrespective of the opponents if something isn’t working ****ing change it. We have been and continue to get caught out trying to play it out. Again, a centre forward on the pitch not being utilised. I was less pissed off today than I was against Coventry but for me there was no point in sacking Mowbray and employing this bloke. It may be early days but I haven’t seen anything to suggest he can take us forward.

 

In the end, we knew the gulf and of course, it's disappointing that we didn't play to the level we can (that might also be down to their tactics).

That said, the thing I'm more offended by, having read through various threads, is that fans who don't live in the area "don't get" the club, based on a few high profile posters' messages. As someone who moved to another country to try and improve my life, I feel It's utter bullshit and has to change. Just because we're not there, doesn't make us any less of a fan.

 

Just home and catching up.

No shock that we lost to a champions league team, the gulf is to big.

No doubt some will use this as a stick to best the players/club/kit man for

 

That’s the thing though our lads will have been thinking they are the bees knees with all the praise they get. They won’t now, they will realise they are light years away from the prem, in fitness, strength, skill everything, let’s hope it sinks in quick.

 

Not me
The fact that their entire squad was out on the pitch for a photo after the game tells me that they were worried. That was pure relief, not celebrating.

 

To use 1 sub!!! Shocking tactics. Never picking up the man, players standing in the way of others. We gifted those 3 goals... Pritchard needs a new contract ASAP.

 

That was the most embarrassing thing of the whole day.

You would think they had won the world cup