Share

Advocaat considers changes

London - Sunderland manager Dick Advocaat says he is considering changing his defensive strategy against Swansea on Saturday after his side conceded seven goals in their opening two Premier League games.

Sunderland, who scrapped through the relegation battle last season to finish 16th, have lost both their league matches and find themselves at the bottom of the league table.

Advocaat admitted he had no clue why his team's defence was so fragile.

"I didn't want to change the back-line already after one game," the 67-year-old manager was quoted as saying by the Sunderland Echo.

"But at the moment, there are players playing who I can't understand why they are playing that way. I cannot understand it, honestly. But there must be a reason and I hope that they can tell me."

The Sunderland full-backs have came under heavy criticism from the media, especially left-back Patrick van Aanholt who was continuously targeted by both Leicester City and Norwich City.

Advocaat refused to blame his full backs but admitted he needed to change a few tactics and switch to a more defensive strategy.

"I spoke to the players and told them that we like full-backs, who if the possibility comes, they go forward. But I've changed that. I've now set up a different way," the former Netherlands manager said.

"The first way for the back four is now defence. And then the opponent cannot get the kind of space they got at Leicester.

"Take care of your man, and beside that, if you can do a little bit more, then go forwards, otherwise not. We have to change the basic facts."

Defender Billy Jones also expressed his disappointment but said he was keen to get back to winning ways, starting by making a statement against Swansea.

"Obviously I'm just massively disappointed because we've let ourselves down again," the 28-year-old said of his club's loss to Norwich.

"We gave ourselves a mountain to climb being 2-0 down at half-time through two disappointing goals from our point of view.

"The only way we can kick start it (our season) is by winning games and we've got a massive chance to do that against Swansea.

"Obviously everyone knows what a good team Swansea are so that'll be a statement in itself to beat them on our home turf and beat them with a good performance."

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should the Proteas pick Faf du Plessis for the T20 World Cup in West Indies and the United States in June?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Faf still has a lot to give ...
68% - 2740 votes
No! It's time to move on ...
32% - 1287 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE