‘Absolutely delighted’ – Many Sunderland fans are being proven correct about this past decision involving Lee Johnson | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Rewind’ series, this content strand is where we rewind back to a particular moment at a club, assess the initial reaction from the fans, and then proceed to evaluate and reflect on whether fans were right to react in that way….

Succeeding Phil Parkinson, Lee Johnson was appointed Sunderland manager in early December, tasked with taking The Black Cats back up to the Championship.

In what was a decision that filled Sunderland fans with optimism going into the second half of the 2020/21 season, The Wearsiders certainly improved under Lee Johnson’s guidance.

When he arrived, Sunderland were hovering around the mid-table position and were operating with three centre backs.

24 questions about some of Sunderland’s best ever strikers – Can get 100% correct?

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Did Marco Gabbiadini score 120+ goals for Sunderland?

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Scrapping the formation with a 4-3-3, Sunderland started to slowly climb up the table, losing just two matches in 19 games.

A shaky end to the season, and another play-off heartbreak hurt Sunderland fans once again, but they have since recuperated and have begun the new season with confidence.

Accumulating 16 points from their opening seven games, Sunderland are only denied a place at the third-tier summit on goal difference.

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Lee Johnson’s side are playing exciting, attacking football this season, and there remains a sense of optimism amongst Sunderland fans that they can push on in what is their fourth year of League One football.

Here, we take a look at the initial reaction on Twitter when Lee Johnson was appointed at Sunderland back in December 2020…

It appears that the vast majority of fans were right to be excited by the appointment of Lee Johnson, but football moves on very quickly, and he will need to sustain this early success.

That being said, he has created a competitive, attack-minded Sunderland team who will certainly be expecting big things this year.

The person who holds the Sunderland managerial role is ultimately judged on results, and thus far, he is shining in that respect.