In a stunning admission following a dramatic 2-2 draw, Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris has confirmed his team employed a secret pitch-side tactic specifically designed to neutralise Arsenal's potent threat.
The Secret Tactic Revealed
The strategic move, which occurred before kick-off on Saturday, involved Sunderland staff moving the advertising hoardings closer to the pitch. This was a deliberate ploy to hamper Arsenal's ability to launch dangerous balls into the box from long throw-ins, a key part of the Gunners' attacking arsenal. When questioned about the unconventional tactic after the match, Le Bris responded with a smile, stating, 'Yeah, we tried to find the details to win the game.'
He further elaborated on the reasoning, acknowledging Arsenal's recognised strength from set-piece situations. 'They are really strong on set-pieces, we were good as well,' Le Bris said. 'It was absolutely obvious this threat was really important for this game and in the end it was balanced.'
A Rollercoaster Encounter at the Stadium of Light
The match itself was a Premier League thriller. Sunderland took a first-half lead through defender Dan Ballard, sending the home crowd into raptures. However, Arsenal demonstrated their quality after the break, turning the game on its head with goals from Bukayo Saka and a sublime strike from Leandro Trossard.
Just as it seemed Mikel Arteta's side would secure all three points, Sunderland mounted a late resurgence. Their persistence was rewarded in the 94th minute when Brian Brobbey connected with Ballard's flick-on to acrobatically steer the ball past Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya, securing a memorable last-gasp equaliser.
Manager Reactions and Fallout
While Le Bris was pleased with his side's resourcefulness, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta was left to rue dropped points. Arteta conceded his team struggled with Sunderland's direct style of play. 'We're obviously disappointed that we lost two points,' Arteta stated. 'We knew that it was going to be really tough, really disruptive, a lot of stop and start, a lot of long balls.'
He praised his team's reaction to going a goal down but highlighted defensive lapses. 'We dealt with that the majority of the time good, but we conceded two goals in a way that we should have defended better.' The result brought an end to Arsenal's impressive 10-game winning run in all competitions, a streak Arteta referenced while expressing pride in his squad, which is currently dealing with seven injured players.
