‘We struggled everywhere’ – Nordi Mukiele delivers damning assessment of Sunderland’s crisis

Sunderland defender Nordi Mukiele has questioned whether his side became arrogant after last season’s success, admitting the Black Cats are not good enough following their fourth consecutive Premier League defeat.

Sunderland’s 2-0 loss to Bournemouth on Sunday, October 18, left them firmly in the relegation zone and intensified concerns over their alarming decline after a promising return to the top flight.

The result marked a stark contrast to last season, when Sunderland secured Europa League qualification with a dramatic 2-1 victory over Chelsea on the final day of the campaign.

However, Mukiele, who was among Sunderland’s standout performers in the 2025-26 season, offered a brutally honest assessment of the team’s current struggles, accepting that their league position reflected their performances.

“This game is just what we are looking (like) from the beginning of the season, to be honest with you. We are not good enough. If we deserve to be where we are today, definitely. Why? I don’t know,” he told Sky Sports.

“Maybe because we became arrogant, this is what I think. It’s just the beginning, football is like this.

“You can accept and just stand up and go back to work. If I believe we can go back to the top again, yeah, I believe about this.”

Mukiele demands greater professionalism from Sunderland

The French defender believes Sunderland’s problems extend beyond individual performances, pointing to their training standards and collective commitment as areas requiring immediate improvement.

Mukiele insisted that the team’s struggles on matchdays reflect shortcomings in their preparation and urged his teammates to raise their standards if they are to escape the relegation zone.

“It depends about what we really want and this starts in training because we don’t do enough and after you can see it on the pitch,” he said.

“You cannot lie about football and today, I don’t want to say we didn’t want to win this game, but it didn’t look like we want something.”

Sunderland have struggled to find consistency since the start of the season, with their latest defeat exposing weaknesses at both ends of the pitch.

Mukiele acknowledged that the team have failed to score enough goals while conceding too frequently, warning against placing the blame solely on the attacking or defensive departments.

“We struggled everywhere. We don’t score enough; we concede so much. If I have to compare last season we didn’t concede as much as we did last season.”

“I don’t want to say it’s attack or defence, it’s all of us, we are not good to all the part. We have to be back in our basics how we were last season.”

Sunderland must forget last season’s success

Despite their difficult start, Mukiele remains convinced that Sunderland can recover, but believes they must stop relying on the achievements of their previous campaign.

The defender argued that the Premier League has moved on and that Sunderland must improve to match the standards of their opponents.

“Maybe we should stop to watch back last season because this is a new season, and everyone is better and we have to be better because if you are not in a level in this league we will just stay where we are.”

He also stressed that Sunderland’s current position does not reflect what their supporters and the city deserve, calling for a sustained improvement rather than occasional strong performances.

“I don’t think Sunderland deserve it as fans and as a city, so we need to do better and we have to work and be much professional and be on a level every week, not just one weekend, every weekend.”

‘I will not sleep well’ – Mukiele vows to fight back

Mukiele made clear that he is deeply unhappy with Sunderland’s position and expects every member of the squad to take responsibility for turning their fortunes around.

The defender admitted that the team deserved their current standing based on their performances, but insisted that hard work and a collective response could help them climb away from danger.

“If we don’t, we will stay where we are because today to be honest with you we definitely deserve to be where we are and we know what we have to do to be out of this position because I don’t like this position.”

“I hate those positions so I will not sleep well because I don’t like to lose anyways and I don’t like to be in this position where we are.”

He added: “We have to fight, all of us from up and down we have to fight and try to find the solution to be out of this position.”

Sunderland must now respond quickly to halt their losing run, with Mukiele’s frank assessment underlining the urgency of the task facing the squad as they attempt to revive their season.