Sunderland: Regis Le Bris reveals one thing that frustrated him in Derby County win | OneFootball

The Black Cats ran out 2-0 winners at the Stadium of Light thanks to goals from Jobe Bellingham and Wilson Isidor.

Sunderland got back to winning ways on Tuesday night, as they ran out 2-0 winners at the Stadium of Light against Derby County.

A first-half wonderstrike from Jobe Bellingham, and a tidy finish from Wilson Isidor 10 minutes after the break saw the Black Cats return to the top of the league, with West Bromwich Albion losing at home to Middlesbrough 1-0.

Regis Le Bris' side had won just one of their last three Championship matches heading into the clash, but they made sure of a professional performance against a Derby side that continue to struggle away from home.

Despite the result, Le Bris still had one frustration about his team's performance, and one that he will be hoping to rectify on Friday evening, as they host Leeds United in a potential early promotion six-pointer.

Le Bris wants to see Sunderland have more possession

It was the Rams who started the better at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday, with Marcus Harness' blocked effort just three minutes in earning his side a corner.

Nevertheless, Derby could not keep their early momentum going, and after Tawanda Chirewa gave away the ball in the Sunderland half, Bellingham had the chance to fire a powerful shot past Jacob Widell Zetterstrom to give the home side the lead just before half-time.

Despite Isidor making it 2-0 in the 55th minute, it was a game that rarely saw a team control it for long periods, with the visitors piling on late pressure in the hope of clawing something back.

The Black Cats did have the better of possession across the 90 minutes, with 51% compared to the Rams' 49%, but it was a statistic that collapsed in the second half after a fairly dominant first 45. Sunderland had the ball 57% of the time in the first period, before it dropped to 46% after the break, as the visitors stepped up their chase.

The match being so frantic was not what Le Bris wanted to see, with the Frenchman hoping for his side to hold onto the ball for longer.

He told the media after the final whistle: "It was another tough game and I think our first half was good even if we can have more control of the game, especially in possession.

"We scored after a high recovery and in this kind of game it is very important to score first. We scored quickly after half time and then the game became more chaotic because they wanted to unbalance us with direct play and were very strong in duels.

"We kept our discipline and that shape is our foundation. We were strong at set pieces because they are very good in this area. We had a good level of discipline. It's another win at home. I would like to be more dominant in possession because we have the quality to do that, so we will work on it.

"It was a really good strike from Jobe, he is able to produce this kind of goal. Maybe during the first half we had many situations where we could have kept it a bit more simple. We tried to make another dribble or make another pass instead of crossing, for example. The relationship between players in the final third wasn’t so good, so we need to work on that side of our game. But in this kind of game, you just need to find a solution, and we were able to do that.

"It’s a good sign that we win not at our best, especially at home and after a defeat. So the mentality of the group is good. I said before the game we need to trust the model and the learning process. We are still in the process and we are learning from our experiences, good and bad. I think after twelve, fifteen games we will have a better foundation, we are still in that process."

Leeds test will show where Sunderland really are

Despite Derby proving to be resolute at times, they are a side that are likely to finish the season towards the lower end of the table, and while getting a positive result was the main aim, Sunderland will have to be better against Leeds.

The Whites have struggled for consistency at times so far this season, but managed to take a point against Norwich City on Tuesday at Carrow Road, even after going a goal down.

Daniel Farke's side have individual quality that a lot of teams in the Championship do not have, and their experience could pay dividends on Friday, compared to Sunderland's relatively young squad.

Leeds are a team that love to keep hold of the ball, and have the highest average possession in the division with 60.8%, compared to Le Bris' side, who average 45.4%.

Disrupting that will be key to Sunderland's success at the weekend, and if they do manage to take control of the match, it may lead to yet another three points at the Stadium of Light.