Lynden Gooch says Sunderland will have to be ruthless in the Championship this season to avoid the fate that befell them in their friendly against Roma. The Black Cats carved out a chance for Leon Dajaku to give them the lead shortly after half-time but the German, who was operating as a central striker with Ross Stewart missing through injury, was thwarted by the keeper.
Roma went on to win 2-0 at the Estadio Municipal de Albufeira on the final day of their pre-season training camp in Portugal, before jetting home last night. And Gooch says it is a lesson Sunderland must heed as they prepare to return to the second tier, because chances will not be so plentiful as they have been in recent seasons in League One.
"Roma won a European competition only about six weeks ago, so we know they are a top team with top class players," said Gooch. "It was good to test ourselves against them and I felt we played some good stuff for three-quarters of the game.
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"We should probably have scored and gone one-nil up, but that happens when you play top teams - if you don't punish them then you get punished. It's going to be like that in the Championship this year, too. We are going to come up against good teams and more prolific teams than we did in League One, so we need to be ruthless."
Sunderland spent the week training in the heat on the Algarve, playing friendlies against Rangers on Saturday - although that game was abandoned after 45 minutes due to a powecut - and then Roma yesterday. Gooch said: "It's been a brilliant camp and we have worked really hard.
"We've got the lads re-signed that we wanted to, and obviously Clarkey [Jack Clarke] has come back and Dan Ballard has come in as well and he has got to know the lads this week and that's what it's all about. It's been really good to play two top class teams who have both played in European finals last season, so we can't complain."
The powercut against Rangers means that, with just over a fortnight to go until the start of the season, Sunderland have played only one full 90 minute friendly as they prepare for their Championship opener against Coventry on July 31. But with games against Dundee United on Saturday, Bradford City on Tuesday, Accrington next Saturday, and Hartlepool the following Monday, Alex Neil will need to think carefully about how to get as many players as much gametime as possible.
Gooch said "I don't know how much [those missing 45mins against Rangers] will matter. We ended up training and having a couple of extra sessions that we mightn't have had otherwise.
"There's nothing we could do about it though. We've still got plenty of friendly games and time to catch up on minutes.
"We've got another game on Saturday [at Dundee United] when we get home. But it's definitely a quick turnaround.
"Once we get back we haven't got long until the start of the season, so it is important that we get those minutes under our belts and concentrate on what the gaffer wants us to do in the lead up to Coventry."
Academy graduate Gooch was out of contract over the summer and there was a feeling that he might move on, but instead he signed a new two-year-deal to stay on Wearside. And now he wants to play regularly in the Championship - at right-back, which is where he played against Roma, if that is what it takes - to help Sunderland continue their climb following last season's promotion at Wembley.
"I'm very pleased. I'm really happy to still be here," he said. "Everyone knows that the club means a lot to me and to continue as a Sunderland player, I'm really happy.
"Obviously I'm at a stage now where I need to kick on and, who knows, maybe that's where I'll be at right-back! And if that is the case, I'll try to be the best I can be for the team and try to help in any way I can.
"I also want to help the youngsters because I've played a lot of games for the club now, I'm one of the more experienced players in the squad and hopefully I can take that into the new season as well."
Gooch was part of the side that suffered back-to-back relegations from the Premier League to end up in League One, and after that slide he is happy to see the club moving in the right direction again.
"That's why I stayed here, to be part of that," he said. "There have been many times where I could have gone back to America or wherever, but I felt that this was something I would have been really proud of if I was able to help get it over the line and luckily we did in the final year of my contract.
"It means a lot to still be here and hopefully help the club get back to where we want to be. Ultimately, this club wants to be in the Premier League and I would love to get back there with the club."
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