Noah Sadiki delivers Sunderland dressing room verdict on Aston Villa defeat
Sunderland were beaten at Villa Park in stoppage time by a late Tammy Abraham goal
Noah Sadiki believes Sunderland showed their mentality as Aston Villa but added that the late defeat showed where they need to improve as a team.
Sunderland almost completed a remarkable fightback at Villa Park, coming from 3-1 down with five minutes of normal time to level the game. They then almost won it as Habib Diarra missed a 1-v-1 chance, with Tammy Abraham scoring for the hosts less than a minute later.
Sadiki said Sunderland were punished for their mistakes but that they had shown they could compete with the best teams in the Premier League. With five games to go, Sunderland remain firmly in contention for a top-half finish and a potential European place.
"I think it was fun to watch, fun to play as well," Sadiki said.
"I had good opponents, good players on the pitch. It was fun but very frustrating first two minutes in each half.
"I think we could have started a little bit better than what we did the last few games. They exposed it today because they are a good team, they have good players and we can't afford to do it again, we know we have to improve on that.
"At 3-1, I had a talk with Granit in the middle of the pitch. And he told me, if we score once, there is hope to win the game. And we scored once, and then all of a sudden you equal to them. It's 3-3 and then you have a last chance. You don't score it and they punish you again. So we were this close to get a blowout, but we were this close as well to win the game. And that's the mixed feeling we have after this game, I think.
"I could have been 5-1 as well, but in the end we have come so close. I think we showed mentality, we showed that we can do it, it's small margins.
"They punished our mistakes and that's why it's a big team, that's why they are in the top four right now. They have the players for it and we have it as well, but we need to work on it. That's the whole point for us.
"I think we never need to back down from the challenge," Sadiki added.
"Today was a big challenge for us and it's important to show that we can play against those types of teams. It's a game where you can win.
"We are still a young team and for most of us, it's the first season in the Premier League. It's obvious that we are going to have some setbacks. We need to continue working and don't be disappointed because of a loss. We need to focus on the work for the next week. It's fun to get tested every week. Sometimes you have a bad game but it's like you always have the next week to bounce back and that's what I enjoy about this competition."
Sunderland are back in action when they face Nottingham Forest at the Stadium of Light on Friday night.
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Sadiki urged Diarra to build on his all-round display despite the obvious disappointment of his late miss.
"He knows it's a mistake, he's old enough to know that but I think we can't throw his whole game away," Sadiki said.
"He played a fantastic game today and he gave it his all. Everybody's going to think about the mistake and he's going to keep it, but you can't throw his game away."
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