BBC

Roberto de Zerbi has no time to waste if he is to save Spurs from the ignominy of the drop, but he was unable to make the clouds of relegation hanging over this giant club lift on another dismal day.

Spurs now have to make up that two-point gap on West Ham United with only six games left, and he witnessed a display desperately lacking in inspiration on Wearside.

Sunderland were by far the more organised and threatening side, with Dominic Solanke wasting Spurs' best chance right on half-time when he was blocked at the near post.

De Zerbi was preparing to make changes when Sunderland went ahead with a goal that often sums up the fate of the struggling team, Nordi Mukiele's routine shot taking a huge deflection off Micky van de Ven to beat Antonin Kinsky.

Spurs were also unlucky to lose key defender and captain Cristian Romero following that clash with keeper Kinsky, the Argentine in tears as he went off.

De Zerbi would have been concerned at the lack of reaction from Spurs to going behind, a clear indicator of their lack of self-belief and confidence.

There is no escaping just how serious Spurs' predicament is – and they will have to produce much better than this in their next game at home to De Zerbi's old club Brighton.

Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris believes his side can secure a top half finish in the table come the end of the season, after Sunderland's 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur moved them to 10th in the Premier League.

MATCH REPORT: Premier League - Sunderland 1-0 Tottenham Hotspur

Sunderland boss Regis le Bris speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "It's the Premier League and we expected a tough opponent in difficult situations. It was a must-win for them and we did well with good energy. It was really important to have our principles and we found a way to score which was still important."

On Sunderland's goals: "We want to improve our style of play, we still want to enforce our ideas and we still have room for improvement in the final third. Top 10 is a good aim and we have to be consistent. The most important is the improvement."

On next season: "We will prepare next season with the way we play now. After three weeks it was a difficult game and I was a bit worried because you never know what can happen. The lads were consistent and for me that is the next layer."

Sunderland captain Granit Xhaka, speaking to Sky Sports about his side's win: "After four weeks of not being at home, it was so important to give the fans what they needed. We knew before the season that we can beat everyone if we stay like this with the hunger and desire and take the three points."

On facing Spurs with a new manager: "Not the first time we are playing against a team who have changed manager. He [Roberto de Zerbi] has the mentality to win but we knew what we had to do and it was nearly a perfect game."

On Sunderland pushing for Europe: "Before the season, nobody expected us to be where we are. When I signed it was 2% chance of us staying up and now it is over 100%. Give this football club respect. We stay humble and see what we can do until the end."

On whether he is surprised about Spurs being in the relegation zone: "It's not my job to speak about Spurs. I am not a Spurs player. I look after these boys and this football club. We look after ourselves and let's see where we get to."

Sunderland defender Nordi Mukiele also spoke to Sky Sports, about his goal: "In football you have to take a chance and that's what I did. I took the shot and it went in so I am really happy for the performance of the team. The energy is very important after we lost three games in a row. We were at home, it was our tempo and our rules.

"We started very strong and the season is very long. We deserve where we are today because we work hard. Now is a bonus and now we have six games to show where we are. We have to stay humble."

Tottenham manager Roberto de Zerbi speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "Sorry because we didn't deserve to lose the game. We played a good game, maybe not enough to win but we were unlucky in a few situations in the first half.

"I cannot say anything to players because they gave their best in terms of attitude and spirit. We can play better for sure and you can feel better. We have to work on that. My work is not so much on the pitch because they are good guys and I am sorry for them. I want to give them confidence in what they need.

"Tactically, we played a good first half. With the ball and without the ball. We don't have confidence to play great football but we did what we have been working on this week. The players can play better if they are feeling confident."

On keeping spirits high: "I can be a big brother, father, they don't need a coach. They don't need to improve football. They can play better and they will play better once we reach a different level of confidence."

On looking forward to the challenge: "Absolutely, I'm sure if we are able to win a game then everything will change."

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Sunderland's performance

What did you make of Tottenham's display?

Sunderland make four changes from the side that won at Newcastle United in the Tyne-Wear derby.

Robin Roefs returns in goal in place of Melker Ellborg, while Nordi Mukiele, Reinildo and Enzo Le Fee replace Lutsharel Geetruida, Trai Hume and Chemsidine Talbi.

Sunderland XI: Roefs, Mukiele, Alderete, O'Nien, Mandava, Xhaka, Sadiki, Le Fee, Diarra, Rigg, Brobbey

Subs: Ellborg, Cirkin, Geertruida, Talbi, Mayenda, Isidor, Hume, H Jones, J Jones

Tottenham XI: Kinsky, Udogie, Romero, Van de Ven, Porro, Gray, Bergvall, Gallagher, Kolo Muani, Richarlison, Solanke.

Tottenham will start a Premier League match in the bottom three for the first time since September 2011, when they travelled to Wolves in their third match of the 2011-12 season, having lost their first two fixtures.

They won that game 2-0 to move up to 13th place in the Premier League table.

In fairness, they had played just two games to everyone else's three games as their season-opener against Everton was postponed due to riots in Tottenham.

So, given how early on in the season that result was and the game in hand situation, what's far more relevant is the last time Tottenham were in the relegation zone beyond the first few games of a top-flight season.

The last time Tottenham started a Premier League match in the bottom three more than three games into a season was in January 2009. They started that home game against Portsmouth bottom of the table, but a 1-1 draw - thanks to Jermain Defoe's equaliser - moved them up to 16th place in the table.

It was the game where Harry Redknapp famously criticised Darren Bent for missing a late big chance to clinch all three points for Tottenham, saying: "My missus could've scored that one!"

What's Roberto de Zerbi going to do with Tottenham and how will he set them up?

I've read about when he went in at Brighton and how Lewis Dunk said it took the Seagulls players a while to get up to speed and adapt to his demands.

The whole situation is just odd, with De Zerbi securing a five-year contract despite only hanging around for more than two years at one of his previous eight clubs.

Good luck to him, but this is a difficult place for him to start.

Sunderland's form at the Stadium of Light has dipped a bit since they lost their unbeaten home record against Liverpool in February, but the Black Cats will be buoyant after beating Newcastle last time out.

If Spurs are going to play the type of football we associate with De Zerbi, they will be open, expansive and take risks - but will they have the confidence to do that?

Sunderland are the team that come into this game with belief. They've had a brilliant season and their incentive now must be to stay above Newcastle in the table.

Sutton's prediction: 1-0

Tottenham Hotspur have a verbal agreement to sign 32-year-old Scotland left-back Andy Robertson when he is released by Liverpool this summer - if the London club avoid relegation. (TalkSport), external

Andy Robertson could finally make his long-awaited return to boyhood club Celtic when he leaves Liverpool on a free transfer this summer. (Football Insider), external

Lawrence Shankland looks increasingly likely to stay at Heart of Midlothian until the end of the 30-year-old Scotland striker's current contract despite long-standing interest in his signature from Rangers. (Football Insider), external

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