Worrying Sunderland Trends Continue In Dinamo Zagreb Defeat That Regis Le Bris Must Fix

Sunderland suffered their first Europa League defeat of the campaign on Thursday evening against Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb, and the most worrying element of the match was that it was largely self-inflicted.

Sunderland fell to a 2-0 defeat against Zagreb courtesy of first-half goals from player-of-the-match Luka Stojković and dominant striker Dion Drena Beljo, but it was the Black Cats who dug their own graves yet again this season with more abject defending.

As was the case in Sunderland's 3-1 defeat at Coventry City in the Premier League last time out, their catalogue of individual errors in defence is causing their own downfall, seeing the Black Cats look like a shadow of themselves at the back from last season.

When analysing both goals conceded against Zagreb, it is clear to see that if Sunderland cannot stop making these grave, self-inflicted errors in defence, then there will be no resurrection of their barren run.

Regis Le Bris' decision to field Kevin Danso and Omar Alderete together in central defence after their shocking showing together in the 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth last month, in which they were both at fault for the opener and saw the Spurs loanee dismissed after just 16 minutes, backfired massively against Zagreb.

Both Danso and Alderete were subpar yet again, with the former's failed clearance falling to the feet of Stojković to slip in Beljo for a delightful dink over Robin Roefs, directly resulting in Zagreb's second of the evening as the retreating Paraguayan failed to clear off the line.

Unfortunately, the first goal that Sunderland conceded against Zagreb was equally as concerning for several reasons.

Zagreb's corner in the 23rd minute saw the Black Cats confusingly congest the front post with defenders, leaving midfielder Stojković frustratingly unmarked towards the back post, to see the young Croatian talent control with his chest before firing an emphatic volley past the rooted Roefs to take an early lead.

Sunderland cannot argue with the technical quality on display with the strike, but there are serious question marks over the defensive set-up and structure on display that directly led to Stojković having the space to operate in.

Given the fact that this example was not an anomaly, as pointed out by former defender Danny Collins on X, with Sunderland conceding an eerily similar goal in Lech Poznan's equaliser in the previous Europa League matchday before Zagreb, this is clearly an instruction imposed upon the Black Cats squad that is not only failing but self-destructive.

Sunderland brought in a new set-piece coach in mid October in the form of former Danish national team assistant Thor Herdal in replace of James Brayne, and with these two errors coming in European competition shortly following his addition, it will make the Black Cats faithful wonder what is the point of his appointment?

If Le Bris does not fix these defensive issues for Sunderland, and quickly, with Xabi Alonso's Chelsea next up on Sunday at the Stadium of Light, then the pressure ramping up on the Frenchman's shoulders could soon become insurmountable.