Fabio Borini says problems inside the Sunderland locker room is at the heart of their relegation woes.

Substitute Borini's 90th-minute equaliser, only his second goal of the season, salvaged the slim pickings of a point for the Black Cats in the 2-2 draw with West Ham.

And in his post-match interview with the BBC, Borini hinted at rifts within the camp were hampering rock-bottom Sunderland's bid to escape the jaws of relegation.

Borini said: “When you want to play every game and you come off the bench so late, it's more of a boost when you score the equaliser, even if it's only worth a point – now we need to be more united than ever and keep going.

“We did it last season, the three of us up front – me, Wahbi and Jermain Defoe – we did well. Today, we just did what we are capable of. We didn't have anything to prove because we know what we are.

“I train hard every day and I do extra work at home with a personal trainer because I feel I need to do more, and this is the moment to pay back.

"But it's been harder than previous times (escaping relegation) – we have not been at our level, we have not been as united a group as in previous seasons, and that's probably been the problem.

“In our situation, we can only get out of it together, not individually. There have been problems within the dressing room, but it's up to us to deal with the results, the injuries, to keep united and keep believing."