Five talking points from Sunderland’s defeat to Leicester City

Sunderland’s run without a win extended to five matches following their 1-0 defeat to Leicester City on Tuesday night.

Jamie Vardy’s 13^th-minute header was enough to separate the sides, as Enzo Maresca’s Foxes returned to winning ways in their quest for automatic promotion, whilst the Black Cats’ form continues to falter.

Here, we look at five of the biggest talking points from Tuesday night’s match:

SLOW START PUNISHED

Maresca’s side were always going to head north with a point to prove following three successive league defeats and with the chasing pack closing the gap to the top two.

And so, a slow start from the Black Cats was always going to leave them with a mountain to climb.

Sunderland’s left-hand side was targeted time and time again, with Stephy Mavididi beating Trai Hume for pace, and after opening the Black Cats up twice before the 13^th minute from that channel, it was only a matter of time before the Foxes took the lead.

The goal, itself, was not the prettiest Vardy has ever scored in his career, but it proved to be a big goal for their automatic promotion hopes.

DOMINANT SECOND HALF

Despite a slow opening 20 minutes, what cannot be taken away from Mike Dodds’ side is their determination and dominance of the second half.

In limiting the away side to an expected goals of just 0.01 in the second period, their grip on the game was clear, and came close to taking something out of the contest.

At times during the second half, Sunderland did have Leicester on the ropes, but for a second successive match, they failed to score, but this time, not for a lack of trying.

AN ENERGETIC CAMEO

Adil Aouchiche has rarely played first-team football since Sunderland’s trip to Portman Road in early-January, where he remarkably missed a chance to retake the lead and gave away the free-kick that led to Ipswich’s winning goal.

Michael Beale came out after the game and spoke about his frustrations of the Frenchman’s performance, and has only played a total of seven minutes since.

Here though, an invigorated Aouchiche looked like he had a point to prove to Mike Dodds, and an energetic performance from the 21-year-old where he took the game to the Foxes may be enough to earn him a start at St. Mary’s on Saturday.

A TEENAGE DREAM

The biggest talking point from the pre-match team news was a first league start for 16-year-old Chris Rigg, who has caught the eye of Dodds since he stepped into interim charge.

The teenager got 82 minutes before he was eventually replaced, but a combination of quality on the ball and desire made him one of the eye-catching performers on the night.

And, in a midfield battle with the likes of Harry Winks and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, the biggest compliment that can be served to Rigg is that he didn’t look out of place on the Stadium of Light turf.

THE WAIT FOR A WIN GOES ON

Post-match, Dodds reiterated that a win feels like just around the corner, and he will be hoping that his side can build on this second-half performance at the weekend.

The task, though, doesn’t come much tougher than a long trip to St. Mary’s to face Russell Martin’s Southampton.

Before their home match against Preston on Wednesday night, the Saints have lost their last two on home turf to Hull and Millwall, but with the gaps between the top four tightening, it will no doubt be a tough visit for the Black Cats, hoping that their losing streak doesn’t extend to six matches.