McLeish Disappointed With Slow Start

Birmingham manager Alex McLeish insists that the bit of weakness that his side have shown at the back is nothing more than a "blip".

Darren Bent had the Black Cats two up in no time in this game and although a draw may have looked possible after Cameron Jerome pulled a goal back, Blues slipped up again and Frazier Campbell made sure of the points.

'I'm disappointed we could start the game in such a slow fashion,' the Blues boss told Sky Sports.

'Although we started OK with a couple of bright passes and got at Sunderland early, for us to lose the goal like we did was shambolic.'

The defeat was the 10th straight game that Birmingham have failed to keep a clean sheet, but McLeish is not too concerned.

'It sometimes happens,' he concluded.

'Great teams and great defenders have lost in the past and you can have a blip and I'm presuming that's what happened today.

'The spirit and the character in the dressing room hurts when we lose and they will be smarting and some will analyse their performance and say 'that's not good enough and I have to do better' and that's all I can ask from my players.'



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