Régis Le Bris explains Sunderland selection decision in honest verdict on Preston North End draw

Régis Le Bris said his decision to rotate his Sunderland side will be crucial over the course of the campaign after a tough contest in a 0-0 draw at Preston North End.

Sunderland were outplayed in the first half at Deepdale and though they improved significantly through the second half, they created few chances to score. Le Bris had sprung a surprise by dropping Patrick Roberts and Romaine Mundle to the bench, introducing them after an hour.

“It's a long league with many games in a week,” Le Bris said.

“We have to manage the team and squad and give opportunities to other players. We need all our players in the best shape.

“When we start without Patrick, it's very important to keep the ball and give time to the others. We know it's a big strength that we miss for sure but it was expected that the last 30 minutes was for him and we changed the dynamic of the game at the moment. I repeat, we need a big squad and everyone playing their part. "Everyone needs to be involved. We are not satisfied with the performance but in the end we worked together through a tough game, tough experience. In a long league like this, sometimes you need to play like that.”

Le Bris conceded his team were fortunate at times throughout the game but said he was ultimately satisfied with a point.

“It was another tough game away against a strong team,” he said.

“We struggled during the first half to apply high pressure and we didn't find the right references. We were too far from the first pressure then the second ball, so it was difficult and we conceded many situations. Our restarts were difficult as well. The balance wasn't right. But the second half was much better, we changed the structure and the energy was better after the substitutions. That changed the dynamic of the game.

“It wasn't enough to score but in the end it was a good point away. We were a bit lucky maybe but we need luck sometimes. We are not happy because the performance is not what we wanted but it's still another point.”