Sunderland dropped down to tenth in the Championship standings last night after a disappointing 1-0 away defeat at Huddersfield Town, the still managerless Terriers narrowly getting the better of Michael Beale's Black Cats.
Dominating the possession at 66%, alongside registering five shots on target, Sunderland just couldn't break down a resilient Huddersfield back four in West Yorkshire with a number of Beale's players underperforming on the night.
Abdoullah Ba was hauled off just after the hour mark in a notable below-par showing from the young Frenchman, the Championship playoff candidates cursing the 20-year-old's dire display.
Abdoullah Ba's performance vs Huddersfield in numbers
Struggling ever since settling the world alight against Stoke City at the end of January – helping himself to a goal and an assist against the Potters – Ba continued to underwhelm the Black Cats away fans against Huddersfield.
The 20-year-old midfielder managed just 30 touches of the ball at the John Smith's Stadium, unable to inject any creativity into proceedings.
When Ba attempted to cut open up the Terriers defence with mazey runs forward on occasion, the Sunderland number 17 was inaccurate and wayward – failing to complete any successful dribble attempts from his three managed on the night.
Ba also failed to even register a single effort on the Huddersfield net when he was still on the pitch, the 5 foot 11 creator passive throughout before Beale decided to take him off.
The attacking midfielder wasn't the only passenger-like performer going forward from a Black Cats perspective however, with lone striker Nazariy Rusyn also flopping away in West Yorkshire.
Enduring another sticky patch in front of goal – after netting only the second goal of his Sunderland career against Middlesbrough recently – the Ukrainian centre-forward's first-team spot could be up for grabs based on his lacklustre performance away at the Terriers.
Nazariy Rusyn's performance vs Huddersfield in numbers
Rusyn is now goalless in his last two games for the Black Cats off-the-back of the Huddersfield game, with the 25-year-old never really looking at ease at the John Smith's Stadium when attempting to score.
Substituted off the pitch by Beale not long after Ba was taken off, Rusyn registered three efforts on Lee Nicholls' goal during a forgettable 72 minutes with none unfortunately trickling into the net behind him.
Moreover, Rusyn would manage to complete just four passes all game from a meagre 15 touches as the contest ended up simply passing him by.
Minutes played
72
Shots on goal
3
Touches
15
Accurate passes
4/6 (67%)
Duels won
2/8
Possession lost
6x
Only successful with two of his eight duels in the 1-0 loss to further pile on the misery, it was no real surprise to see Rusyn given a poor 5/10 rating by Sunderland Echo journalist Phil Smith in his post-match thoughts – Smith stating that the Ukrainian attacker made 'next to no impact' troubling the Huddersfield defenders.
With Mason Burstow looking lively late on in a brief cameo off the bench – creating one big chance despite only being on the pitch for a mere nine minutes – there could well be a selection dilemma for Beale to address up top as Sunderland face off against ex-manager Tony Mowbray at the weekend against Birmingham City.
Beale will aim to nip his side's inconsistencies in the bud fast, with Sunderland's struggles on the road tough to take after easily overcoming Plymouth Argyle last time at home.
If they aren't dealt with soon, the Wearside club could be left behind in the ongoing race to make it into the top six.
