Sunderland have ‘major Dan Neil concern’ after what happened v Coventry
Sunderland fell to an embarrassing away defeat to Coventry City on Saturday, failing to lay a glove on the hosts all afternoon.
Having recently been disappointed with a 1-1 draw at home to Preston, Sunderland simply needed to improve on their performance and get a result against Frank Lampard‘s side.
However, a quite atrocious performance saw Sunderland suffer a 3-0 defeat against the Sky Blues, with one major concern emerging in the form of their captain, Neil.
Neil stinks v Coventry
Despite the recent run of form, Sunderland are still having a successful campaign, though the performances simply have to improve.
Neil has been one of the most influential players for Sunderland this season, barely ever putting a foot wrong, though it was a completely different story for the academy graduate this afternoon.
According to FotMob, the midfielder completed just 65 per cent of his 31 attempted passes in the game and just 33 per cent of his attempted long balls.
| Sunderland | Appearances | Goals | Assists | Pass accuracy |
| Dan Neil | 36 | 2 | 3 | 83.4% |
Neil is usually very composed and calm on the ball, but his performance against Coventry couldn’t have been any different.
Just one of his five ground duels resulted in the Black Cats retaining possession, while we failed to win any of his duels in the air
Both of his attempted dribbles resulted in Coventry winning the ball back, while also failing to make a single tackle in the game despite the host’s dominance on the ball.
Sunderland are heading in the wrong direction
Ever since the defeat to Leeds United, it feels as though performance levels have dropped significantly.
Whether that’s a coincidence or whether Sunderland have downed tools, knowing that automatic promotion is a distant fantasy is up for debate.
However, what is not up for debate is the fact that recent performances have simply been unacceptable for a team chasing promotion.
A top-two finish is all put off the cards now for the Black Cats, but finding momentum ahead of the final eight games of the season will be just as crucial as ever if they are to achieve any form of success through the playoffs.