“We’re enjoying our football under him” Sunderland Ace reveal Le Bris immediate impact to the Black Cats and now boost players mentality towards not just EPL promotion but Title chase by returning Sunderland to the Glory days.
Trai Hume emphasizes that the Sunderland squad is staying grounded despite their impressive start to the Championship season, acknowledging that there are still many areas where they can improve.
The Black Cats extended their perfect start with a 3-1 victory over Portsmouth at Fratton Park, placing them at the top of the table with a remarkable +9 goal difference heading into the international break. Hume, 22, notes that the team is in a good place and enjoying their football under new head coach Régis Le Bris, but they’re careful not to get complacent so early in the season.
“We’re enjoying our football,” Hume stated. “We’re on the front foot, playing aggressively, and aiming to win games. Even at 2-0 up, we’re pushing for more goals. It’s great to start well, but we understand it’s a long season, and staying consistent is key. We’re aiming for promotion, but the focus is on taking it game by game, as the manager keeps reminding us. He’s always saying, ‘next game, next game’—we’re not looking too far ahead. We believe there are still aspects of our play that can improve. It’s an ideal start, but consistency is what we’re aiming for.”
Sunderland has been strong defensively so far, a trend that continued at Portsmouth, despite Luke O’Nien’s late own goal ending their clean sheet streak. Hume credits Le Bris for his work on the team’s organization and believes that the efforts of those in front of the back four have helped relieve pressure on the defense this season.
“I think it’s clear that the manager has given us a good tactical balance,” Hume said. “We want to press teams whenever possible, but if they break through, we drop into our shape and stay solid. We aim to play on the front foot, but that won’t always work—the teams we face are strong, and there will be times when they play through our press. When that happens, it’s about dropping back and defending our goal. We’ve done that well in the first four games, but the challenge is to maintain that consistency. Credit also goes to the midfield and attacking players—they’re doing a lot of work in front of the ball, which is helping us at the back.”
Hume will now join Dan Ballard on international duty with Northern Ireland, who are set to face Luxembourg and Bulgaria before Sunderland returns to action against Plymouth in two weeks.