Everything Alan Shearer said about Sunderland vs West Ham on Match of the Day – ‘Lazy’
Sunderland lost 3-1 to West Ham at the London Stadium on Saturday.
First-half goals from Crysencio Summerville, Jarrod Bowen, and Mateus Fernandes put the hosts 3-0 up, and Brian Brobbey’s consolation goal wasn’t enough to drag the Black Cats back into the match.
Sunderland’s loss to West Ham leaves them 10th in the league table, and their hopes of playing in Europe next season have taken a blow.
Although West Ham were favourites going into the match against Sunderland, Regis Le Bris will be bitterly disappointed with how his team performed at the London Stadium.
Granit Xhaka was unavailable for the game, and Alan Shearer felt Sunderland’s work effort was far from good enough throughout the match.
Alan Shearer left unimpressed by Sunderland’s weak performance vs West Ham
Shearer has praised Sunderland plenty of times this season, but he was shocked at the lacklustre performance against relegation-threatened West Ham.
Speaking on Match of the Day on 24 January, the Newcastle legend didn’t hold back in his assessment of the match.
He said: “They got outfought in the first half. They were lazy, and there was no desire to close any West Ham player down with any urgency.
| West Ham | Stat | Sunderland |
| 47% | Possession | 53% |
| 1.52 | Expected goals | 0.67 |
| 13 | Shots | 7 |
| 4 | Big chances | 3 |
| 66% | Ground duels won | 34% |
“The smallest player on the park manages to out-jump the centre-backs, which isn’t good enough.
“The lack of effort from Enzo Le Fee to close down Mateus Fernandes’ shot for the third goal just wasn’t good enough either.”
It’s clear that the Black Cats weren’t at their tenacious best, and it ultimately cost them against a side that wanted it more on the day.
Sunderland beat West Ham 3-0 on the opening day of the season, and it’s fair to say that they enacted revenge on Le Bris’ side.
Sunderland’s away form could cost them European football
The Black Cats can have no complaints at all, and it highlights a wider theme that could worry supporters in the long run.
Having won just twice on the road this season, it’s clear that Sunderland have become incredibly reliant on their form at the Stadium of Light.
Indeed, Le Bris’ side are unbeaten on home turf, and while that is remarkable, they need to show consistency on their travels too.
With Burnley coming to the Stadium of Light in their next league match, the Black Cats have the perfect opportunity to get back to winning ways.
Given the nature of the league, the possibility of finishing in the European spots isn’t low at all.
However, Sunderland need to get their act together away from home if they want to have the chance of pulling off a fantastic achievement.