Régis Le Bris explains the Champions League example that can give Sunderland fans hope for play-offs
Sunderland begin their play-off campaign at Coventry City on Friday night
Régis Le Bris remains confident that Sunderland fans will see a different side when their Championship play-off campaign begins at Coventry City on Friday night.
The Black Cats go into the game having the lost five games of the regular season, scoring just one goal in the process. The head coach has heavily rotated during that time and believes his strategy will ensure his team can compete against a strong opponent. Still a keen follower of French football, Le Bris believes PSG’s excellent performance against Arsenal in the first leg of the Champions League semi final demonstrates how players can lift their level on the big occasion.
“This all started with a massive achievement,” said Le Bris. “We were in the top four all season and secured the fourth place. After that, probably after the games against Leeds and Hull, we felt that the automatic promotion became unrealistic.
“But at the same time, the fourth place was secured really early, so we didn’t really have anything to chase. In that situation, I think it’s tough for all of the teams in the world.
“If you look at Paris St Germain in France, for example, they won the title and went unbeaten all season. But when they started to prepare for the semi-final, they lost two games in a row, one at home and one away. Even the biggest teams in the world can struggle in that situation, and I think it was the case for us as well.
“Now, we play for a specific event and we have something to chase, so the mindset will be completely different.”
The behind-scenes performances that give Sunderland boss confidence
Though Romaine Mundle and Aji Alese are not expected to return to the squad until the second leg next week, Le Bris believes there has ben a significant uplift in both the intensity and standard of training in recent weeks, underlining his confidence that his players are ready to deliver.
“I think the players are ready,” said Le Bris. “In the training sessions in the last three weeks, it was really clear that they switched on.
“Now, the effects weren’t the effects that I expected in the games (against Oxford and QPR), but the quality of the sessions and the commitment and willingness to train properly were really good.
“You could see that from the intensity of the training sessions. Even the conversations they are having – they get more frustrated, they argue more and that just shows they are really involved and wanting to take care of our game model and our team.
“Because many injured players were back, the level stepped up even more. It is always like that. I don’t want to be disrespectful to the Under-21s players, but they are younger and they need experiences. The level is not exactly the same.
“In the last few weeks, it has been a bit different. For me, they are players who want to play the best games and the most important games, so I am sure they will be ready.”