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Cape Town - Sunderland need to show more commitment and find a way to kickstart their Premier League campaign even if it means abandoning their passing game, captain Lee Cattermole has said.
Sunderland find themselves at the bottom of the table having lost both their games in the league and Cattermole said they must try to keep clean sheets.
"It has been a very disappointing start to the season. We have to get going, it's as simple as that," the 27-year-old was quoted as saying by the Chronicle Live.
"There's no hiding place, and there's nothing else you can do other than dig in and look to show some fight to get things going.
"Maybe we'll have to get back to the basics and not even try to be pretty. We need to show some fight and commitment and look to keep a clean sheet to start with."
Sunderland started their campaign with a 3-1 defeat against Norwich City at home and lost 4-2 at Leicester City on Saturday.
Cattermole, currently in his seventh season with Sunderland, said the defenders should not shoulder the entire blame for conceding seven goals in their first two matches.
"There's two sides to the game, and you have to do the ugly side as well," the former Wigan Athletic midfielder said.
"If you're getting beat and you're conceding the goals that we're getting beaten by, then it's because you're not defending and shutting people down well enough.
"That's the whole of the team and the whole of the squad."
