Sunderland to 'sacrifice' Europa League amid Regis Le Bris latest
Sunderland are prepared to sacrifice their Europa League campaign to ensure their Premier League form turns around, sources have told Football Insider.
The Black Cats are determined to avoid being dragged into a relegation battle in their league campaign, after a difficult start to the domestic season.
Regis Le Bris is not at risk of losing his job at the Stadium of Light just yet, but the club are aware that they may not be able to balance both their league and continental campaigns for the full season.
Sources say that the Europa League schedule could be put on the back burner if Sunderland's situation worsens, with keeping their Premier League status seen as the utmost priority.
The North East outfit slipped into the bottom three when they were beaten away at Bournemouth on Sunday, and they are now without a win in the league since 30 August.
Their poor form is beginning to cause issues for them, with Le Bris having plenty of problems to deal with at the moment.
Sunderland concern eased by injuries
Sunderland are beginning to grow a little worried amid their poor start to the league season, but they are not pressing the panic button just yet.
The club hierarchy are well aware that Le Bris has had to deal with injuries to several of his key players in recent weeks, which hasn't helped his cause when it comes to the Thursday-to-Sunday schedule.
Dan Ballard and Brian Brobbey both haven't featured since 20 September, while Wilson Isidor also missed both games last week due to injury.
New signing Thomas Meunier had impressed during the opening weeks of the campaign, but is also unavailable for selection at the moment.
Le Bris has had no option but to shuffle the pack as a result, with young striker Timur Tutierov getting his Premier League debut in the defeat to Bournemouth.
With that in mind, the board are prepared to show patience to Le Bris at the moment, as they know that his hand has been far from ideal so far.
'Very ambitious' board putting pressure on Regis Le Bris
Football Insider revealed on Monday that Le Bris "knows" that he needs to turn his team's fortunes around "quickly" in the coming weeks.
The Sunderland hierarchy are "very ambitious," and do not want to face a relegation battle under any circumstances.
Sources say that Le Bris has enough "credit in the bank" at the moment, after his huge achievement to secure European qualification last term.
However, that could soon run out if things don't improve, with the Black Cats' 100 per cent Europa League record unlikely to be enough to save him long-term.