Talking Tactics: Sunderland strolled past Oxford — how did we do it?

Sunderland extended their lead at the top of the table with a clean sweep of victories last week. After what was probably the most physical game much of this young side will experience in their professional careers, Sunderland welcomed Oxford United to the Stadium of Light in their first meeting since the League One promotion run-in back in the 2021-2022 season.

Oxford came off the back of five consecutive draws, including impressive results against promotion-chasing Burnley, West Brom, and Luton, meaning that if Sunderland weren’t careful, they could risk dropping points in a similar way to their promotion rivals. In the end, however, Sunderland brushed aside Oxford in what was probably their most confident and comfortable game of the season so far. But how did Le Bris maintain his side’s rhythm and finish the week with a full points haul?

As a disclaimer for regular readers, I had intended to produce an accompanying article for the Luton Town fixture, as I personally think the Luton game has been the most important of the season for Sunderland so far—not from a tactical point of view, but more as a mental and psychological victory. In truth, the football was incredibly turgid at times, with the exception of Sunderland’s occasional opportunities to attack, which resulted in some real moments of individual quality. Therefore, the analysis was more geared around man-management than the football played.

Sunderland Line-up

Sunderland saw two changes from the side that battled to the death at Kenilworth Road. One change was expected; the other was enforced, as Anthony Patterson picked up a knock against Luton, which was further aggravated in Friday’s training session. As a result, Simon Moore stepped in to make his full league debut for Sunderland.

The only other change was on the wing, as Patrick Roberts returned to the side following his understandable exclusion against the physically demanding Luton side in midweek. Chris Rigg moved back to his regular position on the right of a central midfield trio, with Alan Browne dropping to the bench.

Given Sunderland’s league position and the home advantage, they were expected to dominate possession. Introducing more technical players felt like a logical move, and true to Le Bris’s style, he involved his fullbacks in the build-up, aiming to keep the game primarily in Oxford’s half throughout the contest.

Opposition Line-Up

Des Buckingham made just one change from Oxford’s midweek draw with fellow promoted side Derby County. Marksman Mark Harris came in to replace Siriki Dembele on the flank. Although Harris usually operates centrally, he is comfortable playing out wide and frequently attempted to drift inside to support Dane Scarlett, Oxford’s lone forward.

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Oxford set up in a 4-1-4-1 formation, with Will Vaulks anchoring the midfield just ahead of the back four, while both wingers tucked in and dropped deep to help defend against Sunderland’s attacks. Under high pressure from Sunderland, Oxford frequently found themselves with all eleven players behind the ball and struggled to break forward with any real pace, as Sunderland’s advanced fullbacks congested any turnovers in possession.

As a side note, credit to Des Buckingham, who, despite having all players behind the ball, didn’t simply set up a low block, as some teams do when aiming purely to defend. He allowed space for his midfielders to roam, which, although it backfired on the day, demonstrated bravery and created a more open midfield battle at times.

Sunderland’s Possession Play

From the kick-off, Sunderland were immediately given possession and were almost invited by Oxford to attack. Unusually for Sunderland this season, our typical quick transitional play was limited during the opening exchanges, and we instead relied on our now-signature use of triangles within a cautious build-up.

Photo by MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Operating similarly to the style first witnessed under De Zerbi at Brighton, Sunderland’s chance creation relied on triggering the Oxford press and exploiting the gaps it created, rather than depending on individual skill against a packed defence. Sunderland maintained over 90% pass accuracy while holding 60% possession in the game.

Mepham and O’Nien would hold the ball just inside the Oxford half, keeping a deliberate, slow tempo as they exchanged passes. When Oxford’s players began to press, it opened up a gap for a slotted ball into Neil or Jobe on the half-turn, allowing them to attack the space. This movement, in turn, created opportunities for Rigg and Hume to generate overloads on the right, occupying Oxford’s defenders.

A quick, drilled pass across to an open Roberts would then increase the tempo, creating 1v1 opportunities for the winger. This approach was effective, with Roberts completing the most dribbles in the match, succeeding in 4 out of 5 attempts.

@BeGriffis

When Oxford didn’t take the bait however, Luke O’Nien was able to demonstrate why he has the most unique skillset for a centre half in the league by forcing the issue and driving into passing lanes with the ball, self-initiating a press from Oxford which then allowed the same move to begin again. O’Nien and Mepham combined to make 178/192 passes at (92.7% success) which showcased this system in full effect.

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In essence, when given possession, Le Bris has defenders capable of playing through the lines while also initiating a press when needed. This flexibility allows Sunderland to adapt their style, even in games where the opponent willingly concedes possession.

Le Bris’ approach relies on quick transitions into the final third, catching defenders off guard and overloading midfielders into the box to support attacks, as seen earlier in the season with Rigg and with Jobe for the opening goal.

Neil as a Sweeper

Throughout this season, Dan Neil has frequently dropped between or alongside his defenders to form a back three out of possession. However, in this game, he adopted this role in-possession.

With Cirkin moving into an advanced half-space in midfield, Neil could drop back to occupy the vacated space, acting as a quick transitional trigger when his defenders were under pressure. He also served as a springboard to help bypass the Oxford press when it arrived.

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As Neil becomes more comfortable operating in an unnatural role in the six, games like this provide a good opportunity for him to get reps and find more comfort in this role in games moving forward.

He was outstanding throughout the first half at not over-committing in possession and progressing the ball just enough whilst remaining within his ‘defensive zone.’

This was supported by his 70/75 pass completion rate (93%) but also of those passes, he performed 10+ progressive passes of 15 yards or more going forward showing his attributes as more than just holding midfielder whilst also notching a glorious assist in the process following a strong interception.

Jobe: A Man Possessed

In what was arguably Jobe’s most complete game in a Sunderland shirt to date, he put on an absolute clinic in the first half. Regularly receiving the ball on the half-turn, he shrugged off several defenders and played numerous progressive passes with pinpoint accuracy to our advancing players, all with a 93% completion rate.

Jobe didn’t just create; he defended when required, recording four recoveries, one interception, and one clearance. He was also a constant attacking threat.

For the opener, he followed his run into the box and planted a fantastic header into the bottom corner to open the scoring. Shortly after, he dropped two defenders and released Rigg with a superbly weighted pass that really should have doubled the lead before half-time. Completing two-thirds of his dribbles and hitting the crossbar with a curled effort from 20 yards would have been the perfect icing on the cake for the teenager.

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I’ll delve more into the specific statistics in a future article, but Bellingham currently tops the charts for U21 players in the championship ranking 1st in practically every important category as can be seen from the tweet below, even more impressive however is that including the top leagues he currently ranks within the top 10 for players under the age of 20 based upon his current statistics this season.

While it’s understandable there was frustration over Jobe’s playing time last season (myself included), it’s clear that the extra minutes and exposure are paying off this season. We’re seeing a player who has truly stamped his mark on the Championship in his own right. He came to Sunderland to build his own legacy, and that’s exactly what he’s doing.

He Came from Russia…

Wilson Isidor’s impressive start for Sunderland continued in this game with yet another goal for the Frenchman, who has now found the net four times in his first six starts. Despite missing a good header to open the scoring early on, Isidor has a consistently ruthless nature about him and, as discussed in previous articles, rarely leaves chances on the table.

In what can only be described as an outrageous finish (which I’ve watched more times than I’d like to admit), Dan Neil latched onto a loose pass after Sunderland’s high press, lofting a perfectly weighted ball between defenders. Isidor watched it over his shoulder and acrobatically volleyed it into the far corner — a move that remains one of the most challenging skills in football.

Whilst Wilson has clearly settled into life on Wearside on both feet, what continues to impress me most is his overall link-up play, clever runs off the ball leaving defenders in the concourse at times and overall work ethic and desire in a Sunderland shirt.

Whilst many fans stressed a desire for a player with more seasoned experience in the championship for this role, Isidor has stepped in like a 300+ Championship veteran.

For some additional context, here’s a comparison with Kieffer Moore at Sheffield Utd during the 24/25 season so far.

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Time to take Stock

With Le Bris commenting after the game that his players had rightfully earned a 48-hour break following the gruelling return to domestic football Sunderland now have a week to prepare for their next away trip down to Loftus Road on Saturday.

Interestingly, with cup ties occurring this week Sunderland will be somewhat thankful that there’s not an additional fixture to contend with having exited the cup in the 1st round back in August.

Opta Analyst

As a public platform, I try to keep as level-headed as possible and therefore wouldn’t like to get carried away however just to add some extra information, this graphic was taken at the return of the international break containing the schedule strength for all Championship teams.

Now nothing’s won on paper, but looking at that list of fixtures if Sunderland keep their foot on the gas, they could potentially be looking over their shoulder with quite the cushion as we enter into December.

Although I’m certainly not one to jump on the Bandwagon given my generally pessimistic view when it comes to Sunderland, we’re now at the 1/4 mark of the season and the most important thing is we’ve got our name on the list.

There’s no guarantee we’ll get in, but at least the League knows we’re certainly going to be knocking on the door come May.