Saturday 30 August 2014 19:05, UK
Gus Poyet remains coy on any potential late transfers into Sunderland, but in the wake of their defeat at Queens Park Rangers he wants to keep his squad intact.
After draws against West Bromwich Albion and Manchester United, Sunderland travelled to Loftus Road in search of their first Premier League win of the season, but it proved a fruitless trip to the capital.
Charlie Austin’s strike in first-half stoppage time instead sealed a first win of the campaign for Rangers and Poyet admits defeat was a bitter pill to swallow.
“It’s difficult to describe how you feel after a defeat like that, we didn’t create too many chances but neither did they,” the Sunderland manager told Sky Sports.
“The way we lost today was totally different compared to the quantity of games we lost last year.
We’re working. I think there are too many names linked with every single team and sometimes the special players are linked with four or five teams.
“There were two or three situations where we didn’t make the right decision, but it wasn’t easy and we have to give credit to the opposition.
“It was cutting edge, we lacked that little bit of quality we needed.”
One man who could attend to their creative needs is Inter Milan’s attacking midfielder Ricky Alvarez, who has been linked with move to the North-East, but Poyet continues to play his cards close to his chest with Monday’s transfer deadline beckoning.
While refusing to name any potential targets, Poyet made clear his desire to avoid any players leaving the Stadium of Light in the final days of the transfer window.
“We’re working,” he revealed. “I think there are too many names linked with every single team and sometimes the special players are linked with four or five teams.
“It’s a difficult one, I hope nobody is coming for one of our players but it is a difficult couple of days now.”
Poyet was left to lament the nature of Austin’s goal, with Leroy Fer allowed to drop his marker from a corner to set up the former Burnley striker, and admits Sunderland must learn their lessons.
“We lost the mark, in the Premier League set-pieces can be the difference and I hope we learn from losing the game like that,” he added.
