Sunderland were poor as they were knocked out of the competition and the Black Cats club captain’s comments to the Stadium of Light side’s media team worried some fans.
Sunderland club captain Grant Leadbitter has given his verdict on his side’s humbling defeat in the EFL Trophy last night, urging everyone from top to bottom at the Stadium of Light to stick together and stressing that you can’t have “little groups” (Black Cats website).
Phil Parkinson’s charges were beaten 3-0 by Scunthorpe, a defeat which knocked the Stadium of Light side out of the EFL Trophy at the group stage, a far cry from last season’s march to the final of the competition.
Luke O’Nien was sent off for a professional foul midway through the second half, conceding a penalty in the process which was converted by Lee Novak, before Abo Eisa and Novak struck in the latter stages of the game for a humiliating loss for the Black Cats.
Leadbitter ended up being very much a passenger in the encounter, with both his short-range and long-distance passing leaving much to be desired, but he was one of many Sunderland players who did poorly on the night.
“Disappointing result, poor result, but throughout my career, through tough times, we stick together, as a group,” he told the Sunderland media team. “To be honest, at 1-0 with ten men, we should’ve had a penalty first half, but in the end they did run away 3-0 winners.
“Times like now we have to stick together, can’t have little groups… we have to stick together from top to bottom and I’m certain we will drive that message forward.”
Nonetheless, Leadbitter’s comments did not go down well with sections of the Black Cats fanbase on social media:
Up next for Sunderland is their FA Cup first-round replay against Gillingham next Tuesday, before returning to League One action on the Saturday when they host Coventry at the Stadium of Light.
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