Roy Keane wide of the mark with Sunderland FA Cup claim after Port Vale defeat
Roy Keane has shown frustration with Sunderland for rotating their starting 11 against Port Vale, despite that not being the case.
The game has been all said and done now, but Sunderland’s FA Cup defeat to Port Vale was one of, if not the biggest, shocks of the competition so far.
A side that look destined for relegation to League Two secured what was in the end a fairly comfortable victory against the Black Cats, who failed to create anything of note in the final third.
Regis Le Bris did make a handful of changes to his starting 11, albeit enforced, though Keane, among several other pundits, seems to have failed to take that into account.
- Read more: Sunderland injury round-up: Nordi Mukiele and Robin Roefs latest as Dennis Cirkin could return
What did Roy Keane say about Sunderland’s FA Cup defeat?
On the latest episode of The Overlap, Keane was one of those discussing how Premier League sides approach the FA Cup.
The argument was that the competition has lost most of its meaning, with the former Sunderland boss using the way managers rotate their teams as an argument to back that up.
And in this instance, the Black Cats were used as an example.
He said: “I understand a team near the bottom (making changes), but when you’re talking about Sunderland or Fulham, who are in a decent league position, that’s the strange bit.”
However, his argument hits a wall when you look at Sunderland’s injury list, with all of those regular starters who didn’t play a part currently sidelined.
That includes Robin Roefs, Nordi Mukiele and Bertrand Traore, with Trai Hume and Noah Sadiki suspended.
Le Bris quite literally had no choice but to name the starting 11 that he did, making the point made by Keane largely redundant.
When are Sunderland’s injured stars due back?
Fortunately for the Wearsiders, they could be boosted by the return of Dennis Cirkin and Brian Brobbey ahead of this weekend’s clash with Brighton.
The latter is their top scorer with five goals this season, but has missed the last three games through injury.
For Roefs, Mukiele and Reinildo, they are hoping to return the following week, when Sunderland take on Newcastle in the Tyne-Wear derby.
Bertrand Traore is expected to be out for another six weeks after his latest setback, while Jocelin Ta Bi is unlikely to feature again this season.
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