Charlie Methven chants, Jack Ross' return to Sunderland plus Connor Wickham's muted celebration: Moments you may have missed against MK Dons
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Boos rang out around the Stadium of Light as those who had stayed – the official attendance was 30,451 – let their feelings known following a 2-1 loss against promotion rivals MK Dons.
It’s now just one win in nine for Sunderland following a turbulent few weeks both on and off the pitch.
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Hide AdThe latest revelations that chairman Kyril Louis-Dreyfus owns just 41 per cent of the club only fueled the discontent, as it became known the old Madrox regime still retains the remaining 59 per cent between them.
Towards the end of yet another damaging afternoon there were brief chants of 'Charlie Methven, get out of our club' from the Roker End.
Methven wasn’t present in the directors’ box here, yet his appearances at away games has sparked more irritation.
Here are some of the other moments you may have missed:
Jack Ross’ return
One man who was back on Wearside was former Black Cats boss Jack Ross.
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Hide AdAfter leaving Sunderland in 2019, the former defender took charge of SPL side Hibernian later that year.
Ross, 45, left Hibs in December last year and was one of the early frontrunners to take charge at Aberdeen.
After the game Ross was happy to stop and have photos taken with Sunderland supporters who had stayed.
Connor Wickham’s muted celebration
Last month it was a Chris Maguire hat-trick, this time another former striker came back to further derail Sunderland’s season.
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Hide AdConnor Wickham scored 15 goals in 91 appearances for the Black Cats, but memorably played an important role as the club avoided Premier League relegation during the 2013/14 season.
Wickham, 28, joined MK Dons last month on a free transfer and had made just five appearances off the bench before coming on in the 73rd minute here.
Three minutes later the striker was set up by Troy Parrott to score the winner, before lowering his hand to tone down the celebrations.
Alex Neil’s proactive approach
This was Alex Neil’s first Sunderland game at the Stadium of Light and, while the result was hugely disappointing, the new head coach once again adopted a hands-on approach.
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Hide AdLike at AFC Wimbledon in his first game, Neil positioned himself on the pitch during the pre-match warm-up as he closely studied his players while passing on instructions and messages of encouragement.
Following the team’s passing drills, Neil had a lengthy chant with midfield trio Corry Evans, Jay Matete and Dan Neil before the teams returned to the dressing room.
Neil was also proactive with his substitutions after an uneventful first half, before watching Mo Eisa put the visitors 1-0 up three minutes after the interval.
The Black Cats boss made a double substitution in the 56th minute as Elliot Embleton and Jack Clarke replaced Leon Dajaku and Dan Neil.
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Hide AdThere was an immediate impact as Embleton’s cross was headed home by Ross Stewart three minutes later, and Sunderland played with a bit more purpose following the changes.
That was before they conceded another cheap goal.
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