Regardless of concerns over Sunderland’s squad depth, they should have welcomed a trip to Bournemouth, whose opponents had not won a league match before Sunday and had been involved in European action on Thursday.
Instead, Sunderland made the contest at Vitality Stadium remarkably straightforward for the home side.
Kevin Danso, one of the club’s summer additions on loan from Tottenham Hotspur, was overpowered by Evanilson during the move that led to Marcus Tavernier scoring after only six minutes.
The central defender’s afternoon worsened in the 17th minute when he was dismissed for pulling down the Brazilian forward as he raced through on goal.
After the break, a poor backpass from Omar Alderete to goalkeeper Robin Roefs handed Evanilson the opportunity to seal victory for the Cherries.
Statistics show that Sunderland have made five mistakes resulting in goals this Premier League season, the highest total of any team in the competition.
Alderete also became only the third player this season to make more than one goal-causing error, joining team-mate Danso and Hull’s Konstantinos Tzolakis.
Sunderland have conceded 14 times, with only Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town allowing more goals, while that figure is more than twice their total after seven matches last season.
They have found the net just six times, and all three of their attempts on Sunday missed the target, making it the fewest shots recorded by a team in a Premier League game this season.
Their difficult opening schedule should also be considered, as they have already faced Manchester City, champions Arsenal and an in-form Brighton side.
“This is only the start, and football can be like that,” Mukiele said. “We must accept what happened, get back on our feet and return to work. I believe we can climb towards the top again.
“Everything depends on how much we truly want it, and that commitment must begin on the training ground. We are not doing enough there, and the consequences are visible during matches.
“Football always reveals the truth. I would not claim that we had no desire to win today, but our performance did not show that we were determined to achieve anything.
“We need to put in the effort required to rediscover last season’s level because our current performances do not represent who we are or what Sunderland should be.”
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