Portsmouth 1 Sunderland 3: Neil Allen's verdict - A sobering Championship lesson, yet no panic

A point on the road at Leeds and Middlesbrough is to be cherished, particularly in the context of matches in which the Blues would have been blown away had they not demonstrated immense strength of character.

As for Luton, a goalless draw may have been tinged with slight frustration having failed to break down a side reduced to 10-men for 59 minutes, yet it still represented an unexpectedly positive result.

So perhaps Sunderland could offer up that first win for Pompey, thereby cementing a solid start to their first Championship season since 2011-12.

As it turned out, the Blues’ old League One sparring partners were simply a class above, cantering to a 3-1 victory truly as comfortable as the scoreline suggests.

A fourth straight league win ensured the Black Cats retain top spot this early in the campaign - and, dauntingly, at Fratton Park they still had plenty more gears to find, if required.

It’s not that John Mousinho’s men were particularly bad, despite barely threatening Sunderland’s penalty area and defensively awful at times. It’s just that the opposition were so much better.

Had Leeds and Middlesbrough not been so wildly profligate in front of goal, those trips would have inflicted defeat. As it was, the Black Cats created very little, yet were clinical and, as a consequence, ruthless.

In a match of few chances, Regis Le Bris’ men were indebted to Zak Swanson’s unfortunate own goal, before netting twice in five minutes at the start of the second half. No more than they deserved, mind.

At least Luke O’Nien gifted the Blues their first Fratton Park goal of the season, arriving via an own goal in stoppage time, albeit a consolation barely celebrated with the result long since decided.

The hosts had struggled to create throughout, with opposition keeper Anthony Patterson hardly tested. Pompey were flat, low-key, lacking tempo and largely uninspiring, they were also generous on occasions to Sunderland.

Certainly the manner of the 31st-minute opener was helpful. When Will Norris saved from Eliezer Mayenda, Williams pounced on the loose ball to crash a first-time clearance against an unawares Swanson which ricocheted into the net behind him.

In an even first-half between the sides, characterised by a lack of scoring opportunities, it proved to be a critical turning point.

Yet this was no Pompey hard luck story, overall they were simply not up to the standards of their visitors and suffered a 3-1 loss as a consequence. It won’t be the only defeat of the season either, this is the Championship after all.

In truth, they had ridden their luck at times in previous fixtures during the opening month, particularly when forced to put out a make-shift central defence consisting of Jordan Williams and Ryley Towler.

When critiquing Pompey’s defence, what should be taken into account is that, for the last two matches, Mousinho has fielded a right-back and his fourth-choice centre-half as a partnership.

Clearly the Blues are a better side with Conor Shaughnessy available and Regan Poole involved. Incidentally, Shaughnessy is expected to return against West Brom after illness and calf issues to contend with.

Eventually Williams will return to his favoured right-back role in place of Swanson, while the injured Jacob Farrell is nearing his long-awaited first-team entrance to put pressure on Connor Ogilvie at left-back.

This defence will improve, it is no finished product. Similarly, Pompey will get better as a team heading into September and beyond, this is not them for the season.

It’s why the Fratton faithful shouldn’t get too despondent over defeat to a very good Sunderland side, irrespective of the comfortable manner.

This team is a work in progress, evolving to adapt to life in the Championship, hence a transfer window involving the recruitment of 15 new faces, of which 11 were included in Saturday’s squad.

Indeed, the debut of Abdoulaye Kamara off the bench provided the shining light of the occasion, prompting the Fratton End to dust down the Kamara song and hand it down to him in a rite of passage.

As part of a quadruple substitution in the 60th minute, the 19-year-old swiftly made an impact with his physicality and mobility, also earning a maiden booking in a Blues shirt.

We shall watch his progress with interest, as we will with this entire Pompey team, who are challenged to swiftly find their feet in new surroundings for many.

As Mousinho summed up in his post-match interview: ‘There is a difference between the two sides, but I don’t think the difference is unbridgeable. We can definitely make sure we’re better in a lot of areas.’

Pompey will get better, yet they will also lose plenty of games during a first season back in the Championship.