Steve Bruce in warning to Sunderland players
Sep 22 2009 by Luke Edwards, The Journal
STEVE Bruce has warned Sunderland's players they will be looking for a new club if they do not start to show they have the mental strength to go with the ability to succeed in the Premier League.
Bruce began preparations for the Black Cats’ Carling Cup tie against Birmingham City still seething at his side’s meek surrender at Burnley last weekend.
And he was in no mood to massage egos in a team meeting yesterday, in which he declared the mentality in the dressing room had to improve – and fast.
Bruce has tried hard to change things during his short time at the helm, but his patience will rapidly evaporate if he feels there are players who lack the stomach for a fight. “I think the frailties of the last three years were evident at Burnley,” said Bruce, who attended Sir Bobby Robson’s memorial service at Durham Cathedral yesterday. “The last half-hour is exactly why this team has struggled.
“We were in complete charge in the first half and looked a decent team. Second half, we’ve gone to the ridiculous from the sublime. We’ve got to bridge that gap. Whoever you play in the Premier League, you’re not going to dominate the whole game.
“They are going to have a spell, it’s about being able to dig in and have that little bit of resilience.
“We’ve got to get that mentality. If our mentality had been right
against Stoke and against Burnley, we would have got something from the game. That makes your season. At the moment we haven’t got that consistency and that is what we aspire to.
“I’m not going to criticise anybody publicly, but we had a meeting to point out a few things we have to improve.
“If it doesn’t improve then they can’t play at this football club. We have to get the consistency to get the club to move forward. If they are not mentally capable they aren’t good enough to be here.
That’s the challenge I’m setting down. We’ve got a small squad so people will get the chance to prove they can take the club forward, but the last half-hour against Burnley simply wasn’t good enough.”
Bruce, who admitted his team had missed the aggression of the injured Lee Cattermole, will respond to the 3-1 defeat at Turf Moor by handing John Mensah his first start following a loan move from Lyon, while Paraguay international Paulo Da Silva is also expected to start for the first time.
Other changes are also anticipated and the manager wants to see an immediate response to the home truths he has told them behind the scenes.
He said: “John Mensah and Da Silva will definitely play and their season starts now because they took a while to join up with the rest of the squad. John's English is perfect. He has to prove himself for us now, Paulo too.
“The South Americans, with my experience of them, they need to come and get used to a new culture. South Americans, when they don’t speak English, it inhibits them slightly.
“Paulo is just starting to settle now because he had to wait in Mexico for four weeks until he got a visa sorted.
“John has played around Europe, he has played in the Champions League, but he has not played in the Premier League.
“That's a risk. But with his quality – you can't forget he went to Lyon for £9m last year – I've got no doubts that he will be ok for us. You do not captain your country if you will not be ok, that’s the same with Paulo.”
Meanwhile, Cattermole will once again be missing against Birmingham this evening, with Jordan Henderson likely to be drafted into the middle of midfield in his absence.
Bruce added: “Tuesday might be too early for Lee, but we’d be disappointed if he didn’t make it against Wolves at the weekend.
“It’s quite easy to say we missed him at Burnley. We missed his overall drive and enthusiasm. But you can’t just have one individual who does it in the team.”
