Régis Le Bris delivers verdict on Sunderland win and explains what left him feeling 'very proud'

Régis Le Bris praised the resilience of his Sunderland side after they secured three points with a battling performance against Luton Town on Wednesday night.

The Black Cats had to withstand a huge amount of pressure throughout the game, particularly from set plays. But superb goals from Chris Rigg and Romaine Mundle either side of Elijah Adebayo’s equaliser proved the difference between the two sides, and Le Bris said they were were a reward for SUnderland’s faith in the game plan.

Chris Mepham produced another superb display at the heart of defence and the head coach said that typified the spirit of the team.

Le Bris said: “I'm delighted, and tired! After Hull, this was the opposite. It was a strong style of play, very difficult to face. Direct play, second balls, strong counter pressing and so on. They played very well this kind of football, it's very hard to escape this kind of pressure. We started well and after, we struggled to apply pressure to their back three. We changed our shape and it was better. We conceded a lot of set plays and did well in these phases because they are very strong from these.

“In the second half, we knew with their man-for-man marking we would have space to create chances. Even after conceding we kept this idea, and I'm very proud of the team spirit and the behaviour of the fans - we were very strong and they were behind us. It's a good win, a strong battle. To manage these different styles of play in just a few days, this is good news for us.

“Chris was ready for this battle, I think. He wasn't alone, we needed everyone and it's a question of personality, aggressiveness. We were clever tactically, both the tactical side of our game and our mentality were good tonight. It's a good performance.”

Sunderland’s win maintained their spot at the top of the Championship table, with Burnley held to a draw against Hull City and Sheffield United beaten by Middlesbrough.