Alan Browne ‘forces Le Bris’ hand after what he did in Sunderland v Cardiff
Alan Browne had very little influence in the game for Sunderland as they secured a huge three points.
Sunderland made it two wins on the bounce with a 2-1 victory against Cardiff City that wasn’t without controversy.
Eliezer Mayenda continued his impressive form with another goal not too long before Cardiff City found an equaliser after Anthony Patterson appeared to be fouled.
It wasn’t the prettiest of displays for the Black Cats, but the performance of Browne is certainly something that will need attention ahead of Tuesday night’s encounter with Preston.
Regis Le Bris surely set to drop Browne v Preston
Browne has had a strange time at Sunderland and his display against the Wlesh outfit will not do his chances of a start any good, having been anonymous before his withdrawal early in the second half.
The 29-year-old completed just seven passes in the game, resulting in a 64 per cent pass accuracy [FotMob], which, when you consider the pattern of the game, is rather underwhelming.
Browne recorded just 23 touches in 56 minutes, despite the Black Cats dominating the ball for the majority of the time he was on the pitch.
| Sunderland v Cardiff | Goals | Shots | xG | Possession |
| Sunderland | 2 | 17 | 2.44 | 58% |
| Cardiff | 1 | 6 | 0.51 | 42% |
The Irishman had a relatively decent chance to get on the scoresheet but completely mishit his shot that had an xG of 0.27, with his only other effort in the game also off-target.
Zero per cent of his aerial duels resulted in Sunderland retaining possession in what was a very underwhelming display from someone with such experience.
Milan Aleksic must start v Preston
With Brown failing to impress and Chris Rigg still in need of a slight break, Le Bris simply has to call on Milan Aleksic for their next encounter.
The Serb has rarely featured for Sunderland this season, despite the need for rotation in the last few weeks and the Preston clash could be perfect for him.
Only time will tell what team Le Bris opts to utilise on Tuesday, but given what was a fairly poor display against the Wlesh outfit, there could be a few changes.