The Black Cats have currently picked up one point from their first five games.
Sunderland midfielder Lee Cattermole has told the Chronicle that they must remain patient, keep believing and show the right attitude to turn their form around.
It was a summer of turmoil once again for the Black Cats as they lost manager Sam Allardyce to England.
David Moyes replaced him but endured a disappointing transfer window as he failed to bring in several of his targets.
That has seen them start the season poorly, picking up just one point from their first five games and sitting in the bottom three.
Their latest defeat came to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday as a Harry Kane goal secured a 1-0 win for the hosts at White Hart Lane.
Things need to turn around quickly for Sunderland and Cattermole has named three things they must do to achieve that.
“All I would say is that everyone needs to be patient,” he told the Chronicle.
“I think there was a reaction to Monday night [against Spurs], and people were at it. We just need to stay patient, keep believing in what we’re doing, and show the right attitude.”
The main thing that Sunderland should focus on is improving their defence as quickly as possible.
They have already conceded nine goals, which is the third worst record in the Premier League to date.
They are also conceding 8.8 chances in the box per game to their opponents as well as 9.6 chance outside the box per game, the latter of which is the second worst record in the division.
All three stats show the defence is a major issue for them and improving there quickly is key if they are to turn around their poor start.
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