Elliott Dickman has insisted his young Black Cats must sharpen their claws if they are to return to winning ways.
Sunderland under-23s will travel to North Ferriby this evening to face the Tigers in the Premier League Cup.
Playing their third match group H, the Black Cats will travel to Hull for a 7pm kick-off tonight as they look to build on their victory over Exeter City.
However, having drawn blanks in their last two league matches against Leicester City and Swansea City, Dickman has told safc.com his attacking players must sharpen up if they are to fire the Black Cats to victory.
“It is something we are working very hard on the training ground to improve,” he admitted.
“Sometimes it is just a bit of a natural thing to know where to be when the ball comes into the box.
“We have got to be a bit more ruthless and it has got to mean everything to them – players must want to score.
“It is the same at the back with the defenders,” he continued.
“The players must want to do everything to keep a clean sheet.
“Defenders generally have that but one or two of our strikers could do with being a bit more aggressive in the final third with their shots.”