Phil Smith's Sunderland AFC player ratings vs Leeds United with four 7s in narrow defeat | OneFootball

Sunderland fell to a narrow pre-season defeat against Premier League rivals Leeds United in New Jersey, the second match of their US Tour on Friday.

According to Sunderland Echo, an early Black Cats error allowed Lukas Nmecha to score from range, with goalkeeper Melker Ellborg caught high up the pitch and unable to recover.

Régis Le Bris’s side controlled large spells of possession but could not find a breakthrough. A number of their World Cup players returned to action for the first time this summer.

Ellborg struggled a little with his distribution as Leeds sat off and forced him to go long, though he made a strong late stop from Dan James. He was rated five.

At right-back, Nordi Mukiele got down the flank well and delivered a couple of good crosses that could have yielded more on another day. He defended well and looked in good order, rated seven.

Dan Ballard escaped one tricky moment with neat footwork and otherwise completed his defensive work with little alarm. He logged 45 minutes and was rated six.

Luke O'Nien tried to open the game with attacking passes from deep, with one or two not quite coming off. He defended well and received a six.

Source: Sunderland Echo