REGIS Le Bris says a desire to keep his key players fresh was the driving force in his decision to rest Patrick Roberts and Romaine Mundle at Preston on Wednesday night.

The first choice wide players were both named on the bench at Deepdale, with Aaron Connolly and Tommy Watson making their full debuts.

Le Bris' changes didn't go to plan, with Sunderland below-par in the Preston stalemate, but he says he'll continue to make bold and brave selection calls whenever he feels players could do a breather.

"It's a long league with many games in a week," said Sunderland's boss, who wasn't surprised to see Roberts make an impact from the bench when he was brought on alongside Mundle on the hour mark.

"We have to manage the team and squad and give opportunities to other players. We need all our players in the best shape.

"When we start without Patrick, it's very important to keep the ball and give time to the others.

"We know it's a big strength that we miss for sure but it was expected that the last 30 minutes was for him and we changed the dynamic of the game at the moment. I repeat, we need a big squad and everyone playing their part."

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Le Bris admitted Sunderland were way below their best at Deepdale but was satisfied with the outcome.

He said: "It was another tough game away against a strong team.

"We struggled during the first half to apply high pressure and we didn't find the right references. We were too far from the first pressure then the second ball, so it was difficult and we conceded many situations.

"Our restarts were difficult as well. The balance wasn't right. But the second half was much better, we changed the structure and the energy was better after the substitutions. That changed the dynamic of the game.

"It wasn't enough to score but in the end it was a good point away.

"For sure, we were a bit lucky maybe but we need luck sometimes. We are not happy because the performance is not what we wanted but it's still another point."