Sunderland boss Dick Advocaat has admitted his side showed little sign of wanting to win as they fell to a 4-2 defeat to Leicester City on the opening day of the Premier League.
The Dutchman kept Sunderland up last season after taking charge with just nine games to go. He managed to help them finish 16th but he will have his work cut out this season if the players continue in the same vein.
The Black Cats, 2.25 to be relegated this season, conceded three goals inside the first 30 minutes at the King Power Stadium.
Jamie Vardy and a Riyad Mahrez brace put the Foxes in charge before Jermain Defoe pulled one back. Winger Marc Albrighton then finished inside the box to restore Leicester’s three-goal cushion before Steven Fletcher scored a late consolation.
Both Leicester and Sunderland are expected to struggle this season and Black Cats fans will be worried after a bitterly disappointing display.
Despite pulling two goals back, Advocaat admitted his side just failed to show any commitment throughout the game.
Advocaat told Sky Sports: “You can always lose if the other team is better, I can accept that, but the way we played in the first half was not good enough.
“There was no sharpness and we didn’t show that we wanted to win.
Leicester wanted to win and we were always too late.
“I have seen what I already knew, it’s difficult to change that at the moment but we have to change something because we cannot go on this way. We struggled to cope with their pace at the back in midfield and at the back so we have to think about what we need to do this week.”
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