MK Dons boss delivers this verdict on Sunderland defeat and his first game in charge

Manning had only been unveiled as the new boss on Friday, following Russell Martin’s surprise departure for Swansea City on the eve of the new campaign.

Goals from Ross Stewart and Elliot Embleton gave the Black Cats a two-nil lead early in the second half, but the hosts had been threatening and were soon reduced the deficit thanks to a strike from Tottenham Hotspur loanee Troy Parrott.

Lynden Gooch missed a chance to make it a comfortable final ten minutes for the visitors when Andrew Fisher saved his penalty, but Lee Johnson’s side defended well through seven minutes of extra time to secure the points.

Manning said his side paid a heavy price for the lapse in concentration early in the second half, which saw his defence pause in hope of an offside flag as Dan Neil fed Embleton in the box.

That flag was never raised, and Embleton scored with a fine finish.

“I'm really excited by some of the things I've seen today,” Manning said.

“Particularly through the second half, there was really good control of the game., we spent most of it in their half and had the better of the chances.

“What you can't do in football is switch off.

“I'm hugely proud of the lads. I'm disappointed but there's a lot of positives to take.

“On the balance of chances I think it was down to us. First half we had a really good spell of ten to twenty minutes, and we spoke at half time of just playing with a bit more tempo. I think you saw that, and at times we suffocated them and they couldn't get out.

“They're a big club, with big players and lots of experienced players. When you're not playing well that's what experienced players do, win you games.

“[For the second goal] it's just a lapse in concentration and that's all it takes, you only have to switch off for half a second.”

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