Jack Ross reacts to Sunderland's brilliant cup win and explains what it shows about his squad

Jack Ross hailed his youthful Sunderland side after they advanced to the third round of the Carabao Cup.
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The Black Cats overcame an early goal from Jay Rodriguez to run out comfortable 3-1 winners.

Ross felt an energetic display was testament to the recruitment work done over the summer and hopes it will stand his side in good stead for the rest of the campaign.

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People might question from a distance [whether we have a stronger squad this season] and might not think so when you look at the changes we made, but I’ve spoken often enough about the equilibrium we’ve brought to the dressing room, contractually etc,” he said.

Sunderland manager Jack Ross celebrates the win at Burnley.Sunderland manager Jack Ross celebrates the win at Burnley.
Sunderland manager Jack Ross celebrates the win at Burnley.

“We’ve got that better balance and in terms of the attributes, I think it’s better balanced. We had a young side tonight, five under 23 tonight, and there was a lot of athleticism which helps us.

“We learned from last season, we felt we had a good season but ultimately fell short,” he added.

“So we then had to identify what we maybe lacked in the squad and hopefully we’ve addressed that. It’s still very early for us but we think we have those attributes that give us a greater athleticism.”

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Ross admitted that his side were perhaps unfortunate not to fall further behind in the first half, but felt they were more than good value for the win in the end.

Jack Ross hailed his youthful Sunderland side after their fine win over BurnleyJack Ross hailed his youthful Sunderland side after their fine win over Burnley
Jack Ross hailed his youthful Sunderland side after their fine win over Burnley

“It’s a good night for us, beforehand we knew we’d have to play well tonight regardless of the changes that were made,” he said.

“It will still a very good Burnley side we faced with a lot of really good individual players.

“We had a period in the first half where we had to ride our luck, but we got through that which gave us a platform to try and win it. The second half performance we deserved to win it, and we’ll take a lot of confidence from it.

“The players should take pride, they’ve come to a Premier League side away from home and won.

“It makes my job harder in keeping them happy but it’s a nice problem to have.”