Michael Beale has challenged Sunderland after they rallied from behind to defeat Plymouth 3-1 and reclaim their playoff spot.
Despite going into halftime 1-0 down, the Stadium of Light witnessed a fantastic second-half comeback by the Black Cats to restore their place in the top six.
Pierre Ekwah, Jack Clarke, and Jobe Bellingham all delivered standout efforts, turning the game on its head.
While the hosts were expected to win, Beale’s team posed a threat throughout and could have won by more. The manager was also pleased with his team’s performance, as they came out strong in the second half.
After overseeing seven points from a possible nine and back-to-back home victories, Beale has set his team a task as they enter a vital period of the season.
Michael Beale wants Sunderland to be “ruthless”.
Sunderland’s performance under Beale has been inconsistent since his arrival. However, in recent weeks, his side seemed to be getting better.
The victory over Plymouth was perhaps the club’s most comprehensive performance under the boss, with the visitors unable to match the Black Cats in the second half.
Following the victory, Beale wants his team to be ruthless in their next matches to guarantee they have the best opportunity of finishing in the playoffs.
Speaking to Sunderland, “We need to be relentless; that is what the league requires. We need to match that immediately, and we need to rebound with a strong performance away from home on Wednesday. We know the fans will travel and support us.
“We need to keep putting in performances and obtaining outcomes that make them proud. It will be an exciting run till the end of the season, but we need to go on a consistent winning streak to achieve where we want to be at the conclusion of the season.”
Sunderland must follow up on their victory over Plymouth with another one.
The encounter against Plymouth demonstrated Sunderland’s quality. Each of the hosts’ goals was a display of individual brilliance to defeat a tenacious Plymouth side.
However, if they do not follow up with a win against Huddersfield on Wednesday, the outcome may be for naught. With numerous teams around them playing games, the Black Cats value every victory.
Beale is now hoping that Sunderland can carry their home form into the next two games and continue to be a “really hard team to play against”.
“Our home form is going to be really important to us in the run in” , he said. “To score six goals over the last two home games. I felt the three goals were excellent today. Let’s be honest: we didn’t perform well in the first half. We had our moments, but overall, there were too many mistakes, our energy was low, and our pushing was poor.
“We had a really open discussion at halftime, and you could see a significant improvement in performance in the second half. Then we have to maintain our standards, and we accomplish our aims in 15/20 minutes. When we play like that, we are a really difficult team to play against.”
