Sunderland’s Championship rivals sack manager after winless start to 2024-25 season
Sunderland’s rivals in the Championship have parted ways with their manager after a winless start to the season
Sunderland’s Championship rivals Cardiff City have sacked manager Erol Bulut after a winless start to the league season.
The South Wales club currently sit bottom of the Championship with just one point from their opening six games. The Bluebirds were defeated 2-0 by Sunderland on the opening day of the 2024-25 campaign.
A statement from Cardiff City read: Cardiff City Football Club can confirm First Team Manager Erol Bulut has been relieved of his duties and will leave the Club with immediate effect. The Board of Directors wish to thank Erol for all of his hard work and wish him well for the future.
“First Team Coach Nikolaos Karydas will also depart and leaves with the Club’s best wishes. Further backroom staff confirmation will follow in due course. Omer Riza will take charge of the First Team on an interim basis, while the Club look to recruit a new permanent First Team Manager.”
Sunderland made it five wins from six in the Championship this season with a 1-0 win over Middlesbrough at the Stadium of Light.
Here’s Phil’s key Sunderland talking points, and some of the interesting moments you may have missed…
A TIGHT GAME BUT A WIN SUNDERLAND DESERVED
Michael Carrick said afterwards that it was a tight game he felt his side had just about edged. The statistics bear that out to an extent, with Middlesbrough dominating possession and producing a slightly higher expected goals and shot count (1.28 v 1.17 and 12 v 9 according to stats side fotmob). That doesn’t quite tell the story of the game, though. The first half was undoubtedly a very tight and tense game that could have gone either way. Both teams looked most dangerous on the breaks and often traded attacks within minutes of each other, looking quickly to exploit the rare moments space opened up on the pitch. The speed with which Middlesbrough were able to break behind Sunderland’s midfield when Le Bris’ side pushed upfield more than justified the head coach’s decision to sit a little deeper and press closer to their own goal, though in truth this was only a minor departure to what we have seen for most of this season. The visitors should probably have scored in the first half, Tommy Conway missing a free header inside the opening ten minutes and Emmanuel Latte Lath missed a 1-v-1 just before the interval (albeit directly after a move in which Romaine Mundle should probably have had a penalty).
But Sunderland’s win was deserved for the control they exerted, often without the ball, throughout the second half. The statistics reflect that. Of that 1.28 XG that Middlesbrough produced throughout the game, only 0.36 of that was registered after the break with the onus on them to chase the game. They managed only two shots from inside Sunderland’s box throughout the entire second half, and did not force a single save from Anthony Patterson. It was a superb defensive performance from Le Bris’ side and all the more impressive given what had happened at Home Park a week previous. The head coach said it was down to better ’emotional control’ from his players, allowing them to make better decisions in possession. Part of that was being back on home turf with their own fans behind them, but it’s very encouraging to see this young group so quickly learn lessons from their defeat. It wasn’t a game Sunderland dominated or an emphatic win by any stretch, but it’s also clear that the visitors did nowhere near enough in the second half to open the hosts up – who themselves remained a threat on the break.
