Sunderland were beaten 1-0 in New Jersey on Friday as their US tour continues

Régis Le Bris believes Sunderland are in a good place despite their pre-season defeat to Leeds United in New Jersey.

The Black Cats were punished for an early error when Lukas Nmecha capitalised on a loose pass and caught Melker Ellborg off his line to score from distance. Sunderland had started the game well and continued to control possession for large parts of the game, but struggled with their final ball and eventually fell to a defeat.

Le Bris was nevertheless pleased with the level of competition and believes his team are moving in the right direction ahead of the new season.

"Yeah, it was a good test," Le Bris said.

"I think we felt today that the standards are getting higher because of the opposition, but also because we feel that the energy of the squad is getting better as well. So we still have a few details to solve, to fix, and it's probably better to make mistakes now to understand what could be the consequence rather than being exposed later. So overall, I appreciated the energy. Our principles, I think, are getting better as well so we are in a good place."

Arguably the key positive for Sunderland on the night was that they were able to introduce a number of their World Cup players for the first time, with Brian Brobbey playing the first 35 minutes before being brought off in a pre-planned substitution. Le Bris said he will continue to be cautious with those players in the final game of the tour against Wrexham on Sunday and is happy with the progress of his squad.

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"We'll go progressively, gradually, because it's important to build the foundations for the season," he said.

"And we don't want to rush too early. And maybe the team can be better [now], but it's not positive for the future. So gradually, we'll increase their game time.

"A quick turnaround now between two games, probably similar to what we'll have this season with the Europa League and the Premier League. So it's going to be interesting to experience the situation. And more or less with the same idea, 45 minutes, 45 minutes. And we'll go to the end [of the trip] with this idea."

Your next Sunderland read: Everything you need to know as Black Cats beaten in New Jersey