What Alex Neil's telling reaction said about Sunderland's next steps from disappointing cup defeat

There was visible disappointment at losing and quite meekly at that, but it was also clear that the Sunderland head coach had been aware there was a possibility this would happen when he changed his entire starting XI.

What Neil didn't do was question the attitude of his players, question their chances of featuring in the Championship or make any stronger demands for reinforcements in the transfer market than he already has done.

In his analysis of the defeat, Neil said he felt the primary issue was a structural one, and that therefore the burden of defeat lay largely at his door.

Sunderland dominated possession at Hillsborough but did little with it. That, Neil felt, was less an issue with individual performance and more the dynamics of the team he had selected in order to get valuable minutes in legs.

Jack Diamond led the line and made a really good go of it, but he is clearly a player who thrives on space to drive into. With Wednesday playing three at the back and largely sitting deep, it was never there.

In the wing back positions were Trai Hume and Harrison Sohna, the former a tenacious defender and a real talent but one still developing his attacking game, and the latter a young midfielder with little senior experience never mind in this role.

The end result was a Sunderland side that lacked conviction and fluidity.

Which is not to say, as Neil himself pointed out, that they were not capable of better. It was too easy for Wednesday to win the midfield battle, and while the first goal was a magnificent strike from Dennis Adeniran, both efforts ultimately came from the Black Cats gifting up possession under little real pressure.

It was a performance which has made Neil's selection for Saturday's visit of QPR easier without a doubt, but he was keen to stress afterwards that many of these players are going to have a crucial role to play over the course of the season. Take Patrick Roberts, for example. This was one of those nights where nothing came off for him. But that was also to a large extent because he had been shifted infield to fit into the 3-4-2-1 shape, and more often than not when he received the ball it was with his back to goal and with two Wednesday players already on top of him. Rarely did he have space in front of him to drive into, a player running beyond him to hit with a through ball or a defender 1-v-1 to beat, the three scenarios in which he excels.

There will be times this season when Sunderland play with a back four and primarily on the counter, a scenario in which Roberts instantly becomes a key attacking player. That's why reading too much into this result would be folly.

What's definitely true is that it highlighted the need for a minimum of three more good quality additions. A striker for extra cover, a central midfielder in a similar mould to Corry Evans (Matete and O'Nien both struggle in this more disciplined role), and a natural left-sided defender.

But as Neil pointed out afterwards, he has been saying that in every press conference for a month anyway.

Read Alex Neil’s verdict on Sheffield Wednesday defeat in full

This is why Leon Dajaku was missing for Sunderland’s Carabao Cup defeat

Phil Smith’s player ratings from the Carabao Cup first round