Sunderland’s 2026 woes summed up as stats showcase Premier League nosedive
Sunderland’s form has dropped signifcantly since the turn of the year.
Prior to the summer transfer window, had Sunderland been offered the chance to have four points with eight games to be played in the middle of an injury crisis, they’d have bitten your hand off.
In fact, if someone said that was going to be the case, they’d have been labelled delusional.
So to be in that position by the end of March is a testament to Regis Le Bris and the work he had done with the Black Cats in the Premier League.
However, just because one goal has been reached does not mean that criticism or concern is exempt, and the Mackems’ record since the start of 2026 certainly warrants both of them.
Stats showcase just how much Sunderland are struggling
One win from the last five, including an FA Cup defeat against a Port Vale side destined for relegation to League Two, speaks volumes about the current situation on Wearside.
Injuries have to be mentioned because, quite frankly, Sunderland have enough of them to cause issues for any side in the Premier League.
But that’s not to say that recent form isn’t a major concern, because it is.
Since the start of the year, Sunderland have scored just seven goals from open play in their 15 games across all competitions.
Added to that, they have missed 18 big chances in that time period, showcasing where some of their other issues lie, as demonstrated by the Sofascore graphic below.
Defensively, they have also started to falter, with just four clean sheets and 19 goals conceded, compared to the 12 that they have scored.
Is it a quality issue or a Regis Le Bris issue?
This is where the debate ramps up.
There’s been a lot of talk about the future of Le Bris, who has had an alarming tendency to witness his side drop off in the second half of a campaign, just as Sunderland did in the Championship.
Many were adamant that it was deliberate, with one eye on winning the play-offs, but with the same thing having happened in the Premier League, maybe that is not the case.
And Le Bris has to shoulder blame for some of his decisions, with his defend-first mentality clearly restricting the level of creativity in the squad.
However, as demonstrated by the fact that they have missed 18 big chances this year, there’s also a clear lack of quality in the final third, which will need to be addressed in the summer.
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