Sunderland produced an excellent display against Man City but were on the wrong side of a 5-3 loss

Granit Xhaka says he has no doubt that Sunderland will soon begin to pick up Premier League points if they maintain the performance level they produced last week.

Sunderland fell to a 5-3 defeat against Manchester City on Sunday afternoon in a thrilling contest, in which they created a glut of chances but were ruthlessly punished for some defensive lapses. The game came days after the club's 1-0 win over AZ Alkmaar in their first European fixture for 53 years, and a week after their 2-0 defeat to Arsenal. That was another game in which Sunderland produced a strong performance but were punished by a more clinical side.

It leaves the Black Cats with four points from their opening five league fixtures, but Xhaka believes the performance level against strong opposition bodes well for the future if the team can learn from their mistakes.

"We came here, we showed big character, courage, with the ball, without the ball," Xhaka said.

"We took the risk as well, we knew the quality of Manchester City. Yeah, it's a long process what we have in front of us. We started last season, we keep going this season and shame we didn't take anything after scoring three goals. But yeah, we take for sure the positive things with us, and the bad things hopefully we can improve after the international break.

"It's a big project behind the scenes as well, and the process is not taking from today to tomorrow. You need time, you need players, you need the mentality, you need the freshness, and I think it was a good first weekend with Europe as well, and you can see that we showed big character. The players are ready to play every three days, that's the most important thing, and if we continue like this, we will take our points for sure."

The Echo has launched a new WhatsApp SAFC Channel to bring the latest news, analysis and team & injury updates direct to your phone. Simply click this link to join our SAFC WhatsApp channel.

Sunderland will now have a three-week break from action, before returning for a demanding month in which they will play five Premier League games, two Europa League fixtures and a Carabao Cup clash against Brentford in a month. The Black Cats will be determined to make significant strides in that spell and Xhaka believes the club can take heart from how much progress they have made since losing 3-0 at the Etihad Stadium last season.

"You want to win games, and of course we remember the game last season here where we got battered, we didn't have many chances in the day and maybe we can score more than three goals as well," Xhaka said.

"But there were good things that we can take with us and just to sort the little details better what we did today. But I'm very optimistic that the season is still long, and we will take many, many points hopefully."

Since the clash with Man City, it has been confirmed that Xhaka will sit out Switzerland's imminent international fixtures after admitting to obtaining a COVID-19 vaccination certificate during the pandemic. Xhaka apologised for what he said was a wrong decision and added that he is cooperating fully with the Swiss authorities.

Your next Sunderland read: Régis Le Bris delivered this verdict on Dayann Methalie's Premier League debut at Man City