Sunderland manager Régis Le Bris explain why he got ‘emotional’ after port Vale early minute goal

Régis Le Bris delivers verdict on what went wrong for Sunderland in shock Port Vale defeat

Régis Le Bris says his Sunderland players were not consistent enough as they were dumped out of the FA Cup by League One strugglers Port Vale.

The hosts took a valuable lead in the first half when Ben Waine scored from the second phase of a corner, and the Black Cats laboured to muster a response. Though Dan Ballard missed two good opportunities from set plays in the second half, Sunderland struggled to create chances from open play throughout the contest.

While a poor pitch at Vale Park undoubtedly played a part in Sunderland’s struggles, the Black Cats fell well short in their overall performance with a number of their players struggling to produce their best performance. Le Bris said his young players in particular have to learn from the occasion and the defeat.

In this competition, it’s more about mindset, fighting spirit, rather than the tactical or technical qualities,” Le Bris said.

“Probably, we were not consistent enough [in these areas].

“I think some of the players were at their level, but especially to create the solution today, we were not good enough. The pitch levels everything. It’s not an excuse, but it is what it is. The conditions are the conditions. Even with that, I think we should have found a solution, and it wasn’t the case. For our player, you always need to experience different situations. Sometimes it’s tough, and even negative, because of the result. I hope they will learn from this experience.”

Le Bris insisted his side were fully aware of the opportunity in front of them, with a place in the quarter final up for grabs on the afternoon. The head coach said his selection across the three games reflected that.

“So we showed that we wanted to, but sometimes you can’t. You need to accept how relentless the competition is, so it’s about key moments. We still need to learn. I think our team is really young. There are 14 new players in the squad that you can’t manage every situation. So I hope it will be a good experience for the future. Sometimes it’s negative, but it’s even stronger [for you]. So I hope it will help our players.”

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Le Bris sends message to Sunderland fans after FA Cup defeat

Sunderland were backed by a sold-out away end, with over 3,000 fans making the trip despite having just four days notice. Le Bris said he was disappointed not to deliver a positive result in what has otherwise been a positive campaign.

They are impressive, always behind us, until the last minute,” Le Bris said.

“So, yeah, I’m disappointed for them, but I think the season is still good. To appreciate good emotions, you need sometimes negative emotions. That was the case today. We were ambitious, but we struggled, and we need to go further as a team now.”

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