Le Bris plays down Sunderland form and insists it is ‘really obvious’ his side must improve despite beating Nottingham Forest | OneFootball

Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris insists his side still have “many things to improve” despite a 1-0 win away at Nottingham Forest that sees them move up to third in the table.

Omar Alderete’s first-half header earned the Black Cats’ their first away win of the season, with an excellent team performance preventing Forest from finding a way through.

Le Bris, however, insists there is plenty more to come from his team as they strive to exceed expectations on their Premier League return.

“The result is really positive, but when you look at the different phases, different moments in this game, we have many things to improve,” he insisted.

“Probably we are at the level for some of the parts, but some others, it’s really obvious that we have to improve. For example, the way we build up the player and the pressure, I think we have a big room for improvement.”

Sunderland came under sustained pressure for a lot of the second half, facing 22 shots, but some superb stops from goalkeeper Robin Roefs helped them to secure all three valuable points.

“I think he has great confidence, but at the same time he wants to improve his game, so he’s really demanding with himself, which is really positive for the future,” Le Bris said.

Before the game, Sunderland’s eight points from five matches matched the highest tally for a promoted side over the past seven seasons.

Le Bris believes that for his team to defy expectations and avoid relegation, they must break the pattern that has often seen newly-promoted teams struggle.

“Just to be competitive in this league, we have to break something,” he said.

“Otherwise, the same trend, we know the outcome. So we’ll take game by game, trying our best.

“Sometimes it’s possible to win. Do it, because sometimes it’s not, because the opponent is too strong. Today it was possible.”