How Can Sunderland Respond Against Wolves This Weekend?

Lee Morrison says…

Like many others, I was completely bewildered by what unfolded in front of my very eyes on Friday. Prior to the match, we were all thinking about how highly we could finish and a potential European campaign, but what followed was brutal. However, when we’ve faced setbacks over the course of this season, the team has rallied well. In terms of advice, as difficult as it’ll be, it’s simply a case of putting this horrendous result behind them and looking to finish the season as strongly as possible. One thing is simple: we need to show the resilience that we’ve demonstrated over the course of the season. We’ve gone behind before and have rallied well. Alongside this, the simple mistakes that were visible for all to see need to be eliminated completely. Fans can tolerate players that make mistakes, but giving up and not tracking back is inexcusable. I’m confident that with players like Granit Xhaka and Nordi Mukiele in the dressing room, we’ll see improvements and a reinforcement of the standards we’ve come to expect. There are still twelve points to play for and every performance going forward needs to reflect our strongest possible showing.

Malc Dugdale says…

I’d remind the lads that although that was our worst performance of the season, it stood out due to how well we’ve done compared to the expectations of summer 2025. It’s OK for any Premier League side to have a poor game or two, and all squads from Arsenal and Manchester City down have had them. That’s normal and it’s even more OK for a newly-promoted side, which we still are until the end of May, to stutter now and again. What isn’t OK is to make the same mistakes in one game or a series of them, and not to learn and recover. We’ve generally done really well after every defeat, and we need to see that again. You aren’t on the beach until you take off the boots and put on your flip flops. That’s for June, not May, and the last thing we want to see is this cracking squad abandoning a lot of the progress made with a smattering of poor showings late in the campaign. No matter what happens during the final four games, this team has given us a season to cherish and has far exceeded expectations of the fans having won the playoffs a year ago. But we also have new-found pride to play for and with early success, wider expectations mature. If we don’t meet organically-growing expectations, we at least have to take a good pop at them and Friday was far from that. We don’t want to miss out on one of our best Premier League finishes and the outside chance of European football without giving our absolute all, so get out there at Molineux and show the travelling faithful what this club and the fans mean to you, as you failed to on Friday at home. 360 more minutes of 100% effort and you stand a very good chance of being part of this huge project for another twelve months-plus, but take your foot off the gas and you could be next season’s Dan Neil or Anthony Patterson, replaced with the 2.0 version in the blink of an eye. There are plenty of points to play for. Now get back to work and let’s see some Mackem pride.

Phil West says…

It’s a matter of standards. That’s the bedrock on which this season of immense promise has been built, and they can’t be allowed to slip with four games of the season remaining. Whether we qualify for European competition (something for which I don’t think we’re anywhere near ready, truth be told) is almost academic at this stage. What matters more — at least to me — is breaching the fifty point mark and becoming the first Sunderland side since Peter Reid’s Lads of 2001 to reach that total. Prior to his spell in charge, you’re going back forty-plus years to witness the last Sunderland team to finish with that kind of total in the top flight, so that ought to be motivation enough for them. Friday evening saw an abomination of a performance that wasn’t reflective of this team’s ability and the competitiveness the players have demonstrated this season. I still have no idea what brought about such a display but it was simultaneously bizarre and gut-wrenching to watch, and it can’t be allowed to happen again. Enzo Le Fée summed it up nicely afterwards, observing that European football couldn’t be spoken about seriously after a result like that, and although Régis Le Bris copped a lot of flak, for my money he was let down by his players and they owe him big-time this coming Saturday — as well as the fans that’ll travel to the Midlands with hopes of a victory against the already-relegated hosts. The old “they’re on the beach” argument is always used as an excuse when teams don’t perform at this stage of the season. I think it’s an absolute cop-out and if any of Sunderland’s players *are* dreaming of mojitos, platinum blondes, foam parties and glorious Ibizan sunsets, the prospect of a gritty battle against Wolves ought to bring them back to reality. Sharpen up, lads. Don’t allow the Forest debacle to define how you end the season, but instead treat it as a nasty if necessary reminder of what can happen if you’re not on your game and allow basic mistakes to be made. Put it right at Molineux and let’s get things rolling again.