STRAIGHT-TALKING Alan Stubbs insists coming to terms with the brutality of life in the Premiership has cost Sunderland dear this season.

The Black Cats go into Saturday's game against West Brom at the Stadium of Light having lost their first five fixtures back in the elite league, including two consecutive home reversals.

And Stubbs believes his team-mates have to adapt quickly.

Very few of the Sunderland team have had regular Premiership experience, having spent the majority of their careers either in the reserves or in lower leagues.

But Stubbs claims to have seen enough in his first month on Wearside to suggest they are more than capable of turning things around.

"This league is the most brutal and sometimes you get nothing for playing nice football. Sometimes you play rubbish football and get a result," said Stubbs, who signed a one-year deal after leaving Everton in the summer.

"But that means not giving anything away and scrapping for anything you can get. If that's what we have to do then we have to do it.

"Those who have not played in the Premier League have to learn how brutal it is and quickly. They are a great bunch of honest lads here.

"I don't want to stand here all the time saying it's a very young squad because if you are good enough, you're old enough.

"We can hold our own in this league, I know we can. That first result will probably bring them on an awful lot. This Saturday we have a very good opportunity to do that. We have to turn performances into points now."

Stubbs admits Sunderland's bottom spot in the league has not come as a surprise, but he expects the Black Cats to come good after taking plenty of positives from the defeats to Liverpool, Manchester City and, more recently, Chelsea.

"I did envisage it being this difficult," said Stubbs. "But after seeing the way we have played I am very positive.

"There's nothing that's stuck out over the past five matches to say it's going to be a long, hard slog. Don't get me wrong, it is going to be difficult, but there are very positive signs that we can claw ourselves off the bottom. Even though people say the table doesn't lie it is false at the moment. We haven't got what we have deserved."

West Ham's 4-0 triumph over Aston Villa on Monday has given the Sunderland squad heart as they look for the victory that could kick-start their season.

The Hammers claimed promotion via the play-offs last season and sit seventh following their bright start.

Stubbs, who is fit to face West Brom after recovering from concussion, said: "You look at West Ham and it shows that a win makes a big difference.

"If you win two or three games then suddenly everyone talks about you in a different light. That's how quickly things can change. Christian Bassila and Justin Hoyte did well on their debuts but it's not just about them. It's the confidence between 12 and 16 players. Everyone has to play their part."

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