Player Ratings: Sunderland 1-0 Fulham

Dan Goga-Cooke has the ratings after a disappointing performance in the north-east.

Hmmmmm. After all the positivity around our valiant defeat on Monday night, I think we’re all feeling a bit deflated after that performance.

There’s no shame in losing by a solitary goal at the Stadium of Light, however it was the manner of defeat that showed we’re still nowhere near the finished product. Not a single shot on target, some puzzling substitutions, and some ugly defending for the goal leaves us with some serious work to do before the transfer window closes.

I wasn’t delighted with the first half performance, but I could appreciate that we’d kept the game tight and restricted the hosts to little in the way of chances. However, where last week Chelsea looked a bit unsettled by our energy, it felt like Sunderland matched us and then some. They managed to play through our high press with little trouble, and forced us into repeatedly lumping the ball long when we had possession. It wasn’t dreadful, but it didn’t feel like a new, exciting era.

The second half started in a similar fashion but Fulham started to grow into the game. There was a 20-minute spell where we started to push our opponents back, with Sander Berge and Alex Iwobi pulling the strings in midfield. One moment in particular demonstrated this, when Josh King dropped deeper, laid it off to Berge, who played a lovely ball through to Gonzalo Garcia, who couldn’t quite get free of Mukiele to get a clean shot on goal.

Unfortunately, the turning point appeared to be our double substitution in the 68th minute. Letting Kenny Tete leave for Everton, before having a replacement ready, meant that Ryan Sessegnon was thrust into the right-back position. Shea Charles was introduced at the same time and appeared to be told to play in about three different positions. The balance just felt wrong.

We tried to keep our foot on the pedal but Sunderland started to pick us apart on the counter. We didn’t learn our lesson when Isidor inexplicably struck the post and Sunderland fashioned a similar opportunity, which the Haitian did not spurn. The offending party for both chances? Joachim Andersen.

The last 15 minutes saw us resort to random football, with no discernible plan, or even formation. It wasn’t for a lack of effort, but we just didn’t look like scoring, with Robin Roefs able to walk away with a clean sheet without having to make a save.

It’s by no means panic stations, just a bit of a reality check and certainly a day of learning for Alvaro Arbeloa as he adjusts to the Premier League.

Bernd Leno

As we saw against Chelsea, more responsibility is being placed on Leno with the ball at his feet. He’s trying, but he looks quite uncomfortable playing out from the back and too frequently opted to go long as he didn’t trust his passing ability.

Obviously, that wasn’t the biggest problem; it was his rash, yet slow, decision to charge out of his goal and attempt to slide tackle Isidor for the eventual winner. It’s both poor decision making and poor execution, a deadly combo. A moment that may prompt the recruitment team to move for a younger replacement sooner than they may have been planning to. 3/10

Timothy Castagne

Against Chelsea he was incredibly effective going forward, but also left us a bit exposed defensively. In this game, he left less space in behind him, but it came at the cost of a less impactful offensive display. It was a more traditional Castagne display, steady, but unremarkable.

Probably the biggest compliment is that Fulham got worse after he was dragged by Arbeloa. A decision that I can’t quite understand. 6/10

Joachim Andersen

I’ve spent the past week saying that asking Joachim Andersen to play a high line is tactical suicide. After 60 minutes I was ready to eat humble pie. He looked pretty comfortable, handled Brobbey well, and Fulham’s line wasn’t as aggressive as anticipated.

However, the last 20 minutes were confirmation of what we’ve all known for months. If we are going to define this new era as high energy, fast tempo, in your face football, you cannot have an articulated lorry at centre-back. It’s been painfully clear to everyone that we needed to replace Joa this summer, so the fact that as of the 30th August, we’ve pushed Issa Diop, the better centre-back, out the door, and not brought anyone in, is frankly piss poor. 3.5/10

Calvin Bassey

I’m tempted to copy and paste what I wrote for the Chelsea game. This guy is a natural leader and a huge asset at the moment. He plays with so much heart, but that shouldn’t be mistaken as a polite criticism of his footballing ability, because I think he’s great.

He bullies opposition forwards, adds a good tempo to our play in possession, and seems to have matured considerably. He still has a penchant for a rash decision, like the way he steps up to allow Habib Diarra in behind for the goal. However, he can probably portion some blame to his fellow centre-back for being too slow to step up to play him offside.

I’m investing in Bassey stocks this season, I think he’s a gem who just needs a tad more polishing. 6.5/10

Antonee Robinson

I worry that this system might not lead to us seeing the best of our American left-back. While he's freed up to try and get down the wing and put crosses in, he’s also required to contribute to our build-up phase, receiving the ball under pressure and demanded to play his way out of trouble. I don’t think that’s a strength of his. It results in some untidy passes as well as some aimless humps down the line as he tries not to get caught out in possession.

Outside of that, I don’t think he actually did much wrong, it just feels a little bit square peg in round hole at the moment. What we want to see is him flying down the left, interlinking with his winger, and putting balls into the box. That didn’t happen today, and probably isn’t helped by the role that Cesar Palacios is carrying out in front of him. 5.5/10

Sander Berge

I was pretty vitriolic in my review last week, but this was definitely an improvement from Sander, particularly in the second half. He felt more involved, less passive, and did good work both in, and out, of possession. The ball carrying and subsequent threaded ball to Garcia was the perfect example of a more impactful performance.

I still get the feeling that he has a couple of gears that we don’t see, like he’s playing within himself; I hope Arbeloa helps unleash him. 6.5/10

Alex Iwobi

Another player who put in a better performance. He dinked a lovely ball through to Josh King in the first half, which ended up being our highest xG opportunity of the game. He misplaced fewer passes and wasn’t dispossessed at all, overall just a lot less sloppy.

We still rely heavily on his innate ability to make things happen and create opportunities, but he’s also being tasked with driving things from deep, which is a lot of responsibility. I wonder if for now we’d find more balance with Iwobi on the left wing and Shea Charles in midfield. 6.5/10

Josh King

Really struggled to get on the ball in the first half, mostly due to the fact that we kept kicking it long rather than playing through him. He looks to be developing a nice relationship with Garcia, twice running off his shoulder and getting in behind and on another day, one of those chances may have gone in.

He once again played the full 90 minutes and despite fading again as his teenage legs still adjust to the demands of the league, it shows how much Arbeloa rates him, and rightly so. I get the feeling that he’s going to bag a healthy number of goals and assists this season. 6.5/10

Oscar Bobb

I thought he was unfortunate to be subbed off against Chelsea, but deserved to be taken off today. He continues to take too many touches and takes too long to make decisions. It’s possibly a trait he’s learned at Man City, where the football is much more slow and considered, but it really handicaps us in attack.

We lack incision on both flanks and we desperately need another option on that right wing, either that or hope that Macaulay Zepa is Lionel Messi reincarnate. Although I’m not sure you can be the reincarnation of someone who is still alive… 4/10

Cesar Palacios

I’m just not seeing it at the moment. A lot of running, which is helpful, but we need more than that. Clearly such a tidy footballer, he’s just lacking a bit of zap. Arbeloa is putting a lot of faith in him, but it’s another game where I would have subbed him off earlier.

I presume he’s being told to tuck in so narrow, but it often means that we just have a gaping hole out wide and lots of congestion in the middle. For now, I’d look to push Alex Iwobi into this role while Cesar adjust to the pace of the Premier League. Fairly confident he’ll get there, just needs time to adjust. 4.5/10

Gonzalo Garcia

This was a lesson in the rigours of the Premier League. Dan Ballard is a big brute of a centre back, and Gonzalo became very familiar with him through this game, as he tried, in vain, to win the physical battle and hold the ball up. An unfair battle, and one that is more the fault of his teammates for pumping long balls towards him.

Unfortunately, on the one occasion he got free, it was the more mobile Mukiele who tracked him all the way and blocked his effort on goal.

Not dissimilar to last season where I had sympathy for Raul and Rodrigo; it wasn’t an impactful performance from Garcia, but as a centre-forward you’re relying heavily on your teammates to provide for you, and they didn’t. 5/10

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Substitutes and manager

Ryan Sessegnon

I know he’s versatile but right-back feels like a step too far. An odd substitution that didn’t work. Credit to him, he managed to get past his man a couple of times, showing good turn of pace, which I guess is why he was brought on. However, defensively, he looked like he struggled to adapt, highlighted by the ball over the top that got Sunderland in behind. Not really his fault ultimately. 5/10

Shea Charles

I think he’s very close to a starting spot. Not dissimilar to Sess in that Arbeloa subbed him on and asked far too much of him. Simultaneously played as a defensive midfielder, wide number eight, and right winger, which is a bizarre combination. Credit to him for rising to it, but it was a hospital pass from his gaffer. 5.5/10

Both Emike Smith Rowe and Kevin were subbed on too late to judge them fairly, but if someone could tell me what the formation was by full time, I’d really appreciate it.

Alvaro Arbeloa

That was the managerial display of someone who is young and still has a lot to learn, both about management but also the Premier League in general.

I think it was probably naive to expect us to outrun and outfight Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. They matched us every step, made the game scrappy, and we struggled. Finding ways to adapt the system is going to be a big thing that he has to work out in order to succeed.

The other learning point is going to be around in game management and making decisions on the fly. The changes today almost felt too cerebral; a green manager with big ideas, just getting a bit carried away. In a moment where we were actually in control of the game, we just needed a little nudge towards the finish line. Instead it was a big change that saw us cede control and ultimately hand over three points.

Despite that, it’s OK! We’ve gone down the route of an inexperienced manager with a high ceiling. We have to accept, and forgive, that there will be rough moments which he will need to learn from. We don’t have the finished article here, so there will be games where he gets outthought, or sometimes he just overthinks it. It pains me a little to give him a low mark today, but you shouldn’t mistake it for me writing him off after two games.

It’s how he reflects on days like today will be the key to our, and his, progression. 4/10