Regis Le Bris has cause for concern as dreadful Premier League stat emerges ahead of Sunderland vs Leeds
Sunderland host Leeds United at the Stadium of Light on Sunday as Regis Le Bris looks to close out 2025 with another win.
Le Bris has done an excellent job with the Black Cats, and few could believe that they’d be sitting sixth in the Premier League table after 17 games.
The possibility of the Black Cats fighting for European football is a miracle, and a lot of the credit must go to the likes of Florent Ghisolfi and Kristjaan Speakman for overseeing an excellent summer.
However, despite Sunderland’s brilliant start to the season, they are failing to create clear-cut chances consistently, if we have to pick out anything that could change.
Sunderland the worst in the Premier League at creating chances
The last time a Black Cats player scored a goal was on 3 December, when Chemsdine Talbi’s deflected strike flew past Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson at Anfield.
Sunderland have the lowest xG from open play in the Premier League this season (7.6) and are the only team in the division that haven’t had a single match with 1+ xG in open play so far this term.
| Stat | Sunderland | Premier League rank |
| Expected goals | 14.7 | 20th |
| Big chances created | 26 | 18th |
| Touches in opposition box | 301 | 18th |
| Shots on target per match | 3.1 | 18th |
Their run of results isn’t sustainable according to the numbers, and the Black Cats are using sheer determination and willpower to get over the line in recent wins.
Sunderland’s 1-0 win over Newcastle came courtesy of Nick Woltemade’s own goal, and it’s up to the likes of Wilson Isidor and Brian Brobbey to get back among the goals ahead of a crucial run of games.
With six Sunderland players competing at AFCON, this period of the season was always going to be the toughest, and they must find a way to get past an in-form Leeds side that have previously failed to close the year out with a bang.
Sunderland vs Leeds looks nailed on to be a low-scoring affair
Leeds’ final league game in each of the last three calendar years has produced a combined total of just two goals – a 0-0 draw with Newcastle in 2022, a 1-0 loss at West Brom in 2023, and a 1-0 win at Derby last year.
Their three such games before that produced a total of 19 goals (5-4 win vs Birmingham, 5-0 win vs West Brom, 1-4 loss vs Arsenal).
Sunderland are expected to beat Leeds, although winning by a big margin certainly isn’t on the cards, given their recent issues in the final third.
Coupled with Leeds’ trend of shutting up shop at the end of a calendar year, Sunday’s clash might not be the most entertaining fixture the Stadium of Light has to offer this season.
Enjoyed this article? Stay connected with all the latest Sunderland news, updates, and behind-the-scenes content by following us on our new Instagram account –@mackemnews247