Kristjaan Speakman delivers verdict on Regis Le Bris' start as Sunderland head coach

Sunderland have made a superb start to the Championship campaign under new head coach Regis Le Bris

Kristjaan Speakman believes Sunderland’s superb start to the campaign shows why they were keen to appoint Regis Le Bris, not just because of performances but the identity he is already building in the team.

Sunderland sit top of the early Championship table during the first international break and while no one is getting carried away with 42 games of the campaign left to play, Speakman says he is ‘really pleased’ with how things are working out so far.

"We were really confident we were chasing down and acquiring a high level coach,” Speakman said.

“And not just that, someone who was aligned with the way that we see the game and the team. We were confident he could help us build the identity of team we want. We were confident on all those things and look you can never say you know how things are going to play out, it's professional sport at the highest level and no one is going to roll over for you. I'm really pleased for him.

“There's been a lot of criticism on backroom staff and those sorts of things which I don't think is fair on those individuals - I'm more than happy to take that because I'm accountable for all of that. I think we have some really good people here, in coaching, performance, data, analysis and all of those types of things. They're there to support Regis and give the best chance possible [of succeeding] and thankfully we've been able to start well. The team is in a spot and long may that continue.”

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