Regis Le Bris believes his Sunderland players still possess the attacking quality to deliver promotion to the Premier League despite heading into the play-offs on the back of five successive defeats.
The Black Cats, whose earlier season form had secured fourth spot in the Sky Bet Championship at the start of April, will play Coventry in the two-legged play-off semi-final, with the first game taking place on Friday, May 9 at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
Despite the play-off battles on the horizon, the final whistle in their last regular-season game was greeted with boos from Sunderland fans after QPR left with the Stadium of Light with three points.
Nicolas Madsen’s controlled finish in the fifth minute was enough to separate the two teams, after he had capitalised on Harrison Ashby’s pass into the area before beating goalkeeper Anthony Patterson to his left.
But Le Bris, whose side have not claimed a point since guaranteeing a play-off place last month, said: “It is human after five defeats to think now you are weak, but it is not the reality.
“The game can change with one decision; football is always on the edge. It is a question of small details. Now we have to react, reinforce our togetherness, these are our pillars and if we can do that then we will be good in the end.
“This chapter is over. This period was strange. We have the same squad that was able to create chances every game earlier, this could be more connected with the period and the context.
“It will be important to have the full squad available. Sometimes it can be a question of balance disturbing the whole flow of the game.
“Today started with this early goal and our opponent played good football under pressure. We tried to be aggressive but didn’t find the right distance, mainly in the first half. It was impossible to disturb them.
“We have to find the right rhythm to win again. This team has shown so many qualities this season, it can’t disappear like that.”
While Sunderland have finished the season without a win in six matches, mid-table QPR signed off with a victory after ending their run of two defeats.
The solid performance on Wearside was achieved despite the events of the last week when head coach Marti Cifuentes was placed on garden leave.
Kevin Betsy, who is in interim charge with Xavi Calm, said: “It was a very unexpected week for us, but the players showed a fantastic mentality from Tuesday’s training sessions, each day they were positive and their application was outstanding.
“If you have the right training week it sets you up for a decent performance on a Saturday. We delivered an outstanding performance and result.”
Asked what happens next at QPR following Cifuentes’ exit, Betsy added: “The football club will take time to look at what they want to do going forward and there will be a few reviews, meetings, and then the staff will get a well-deserved break.
“We will wait for the phone to say whether we are wanted at the club or not. It is the nature of first-team football, if you want security and regularity in your life then maybe a different job…
“I’m very grateful to the football club. They recruited me as first-team coach and I am very clear. Myself and all the staff try to help the players and hopefully I will go back to that role.”
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