Intro:

Sunderland manager Gus Poyet on Friday assessed the state of his team and looked ahead to Monday's (3rd November) trip to Crystal Palace in the English Premier League.

Script:

SOUNDBITE (English) Gus Poyet, Sunderland manager (on the mood within the squad):

"I think we need a win. It's incredible that before that game (the 8-0 thrashing at Southampton), we were asking for a win and we got it against Stoke (City) and then the following game is the worst of the season, so that shows you that sometimes it's better to be consistent, even if you don't get those wins and you're still in the game, you're always at the edge, because sooner or later you're going to win three or four in a row. Having these 'knock downs', that makes people think that maybe you are worse than you really are, so I try not to be extreme, one way or the other, try to make sure that we play the way that we've been trying to play and be strong enough to go and win. There are going to be moments in the game, for sure, that we're going to be on top. We need to take advantage."

SOUNDBITE (English) Gus Poyet, Sunderland manager (on taking on Crystal Palace):

"No, no. I think we can take something (motivation) from last year, no? They took four points from six from us, which was too much for a team that is playing down in there with you, so we need to make sure that we get more points this year than last year."

SOUNDBITE (English) Gus Poyet, Sunderland manager (on whether the Crystal Palace game will be a close affair):

"That's what I like in football when they are tight and there is not too many things. I hope there are no mistakes. Normal game please, no mistakes."

SOUNDBITE (English) Gus Poyet, Sunderland manager (on how the squad is training and the state of the team):

"I think in terms of commitment and desire and training and effort, yes. We're still missing a little bit of quality. Which starts coming with the mental side of the game. The feeling, the confidence of going in there and performing. That is what we're trying to achieve in the next couple of days before the game."