Sunderland were dumped out of the FA Cup by Port Vale on Sunday afternoon.
Injuries and suspensions left Le Bris with a threadbare squad to manage, though he stuck to his word in selecting the strongest XI possible. Sunderland delivered a poor display and were deservedly knocked out after Ben Waine’s first-half goal. Here’s how we rated all the Black Cats involved on the day..
1. GK - Melker Ellborg
Had an eventful game. Made a brilliant header away from his own line after an O’Nien backpass almost flew in, but couldn’t get a good enough connection on the header from Ben Waine that followed. Booked in the second half when he took out George Hall breaking through on goal. 5 | Frank Reid
2. RB - Lutsharel Geertruida
Struggled to get into forward areas and didn’t really produce a great deal when he did. Didn’t lose too many challenges defensively but had a very quiet game back in his favoured position. 4 | Getty Images
3. CB - Dan Ballard
Competed pretty well and won a lot of headers, but missed two golden opportunities at the near post in the second half. 5 Photo: Jordan Pettitt
4. CB - Omar Alderete
Sunderland’s best player by a significant distance. Defensively dominant and one of the few players to show any quality or incision on the ball. 7 | Chris Fryatt