Sunderland keeper wants refund for fans

Sunderland goalkeeper Vito Mannone wants a refund for fans of the club who made the 650-mile round trip to see their side humiliated in an

embarrassing eight-nil defeat to Southampton.

Mon, 20 Oct, 2014 - 13:55

Grainne McGuinness

Sunderland goalkeeper Vito Mannone wants a refund for fans of the club who made the 650-mile round trip to see their side humiliated in an

Speaking to The Independent Mannone said: “I will personally talk to the team to see if it is possible to pay [for the fans’] tickets and their trip.

“We should do it because we didn’t put our foot [in], we didn’t work hard. We started the game well but after we conceded we threw in the towel – and I include myself.”

The rout began with a comical own-goal from defender Santiago Vergini and turned into a nightmare afternoon for the Black Cats with errors all over the field.

“We have to remember how embarrassed we felt and take some anger from this game into the next one and produce a performance,” continued Mannone. “We have to do it for ourselves, for the club and for our great fans as well that came all that way.”

Sunderland manager Gus Poyet was also left fuming after the defeat which he described as “the most embarrassing time I’ve had in a football pitch”.

“From me to the last player, everybody needs to look at themselves and ask if they did right or wrong,” said Poyet. “When you are on the pitch it’s not like in tennis or golf, where you play on your own.

“It’s a team thing. You need to react together, to defend together. At 4-0 or 5-0 down it’s not easy but there is no place to hide.”

See all eight goals here.