Le Bris ‘in Catch-22 situation’ after what happened in Sunderland draw v Norwich
Sunderland confirmed their spot in the playoffs with a draw and away to Norwich, but it provided Regis Le Bris with a tough scenario to deal with.
Sunderland were far from their best in their 0-0 draw with Norwich, but the point was enough to guarantee them a spot in the top six come the end of the season.
However, with little to no chance of a top-two finish, the Black Cats are somewhat caught in no man’s land ahead of the final five games.
Form and momentum are often the key factors in playoff success, but having a fit and healthy squad is arguably just as important as Sunderland look to return to the Premier League.
Sunderland may rotate heavily for final five games
Le Bris shocked everyone with his lineup for Sunderland’s clash at Carrow Road, with several first-team players missing out on the starting 11, and some missing out entirely.
Milan Aleksic was one of those brought into the starting 11 for only his second start of the season, and failed to impress for Sunderland.
| Championship | W | D | L | P |
| Sunderland | 21 | 13 | 7 | 76 |
However, the question now is, does Le Bris rotate his team and potentially sacrifice that momentum in a bid to get his squad back to full capacity and fit to compete, or does he risk more injuries in an attempt to maintain their current form?
Both sides of the argument certainly hold value, and very few would envy the Frenchman for having to make that decision ahead of the final run-in.
Sunderland have had a successful campaign
Given it looked likely that Sunderland could finish in the automatic promotion places, some will be disappointed to have essentially missed out on that opportunity now.
However, the Wearsiders are factually the best non-parachute team in their division, and have given the leading three a close run for their money throughout their campaign.
Of course, very few will look back at the season as a success if promotion isn’t achieved via the playoffs, but if Sunderland can find the form and performance level that brought them plenty of success in the earliest stages of the campaign, Premier League football could return to the Stadium of Light next season.