Steve Bruce feels he has been harshly judged in the early part of the season.
The Sunderland boss has endured a less than smooth beginning to thee campaign with the Black Cats only recording their first win on the weekend.
Bruce has been criticised so far but believes that those haters have been too quick to judge, especially after a top half finish last term.
"Anybody who's managed at this level will know that it engulfs you very, very quickly, and here in the north east it does engulf you quicker than anywhere," Bruce told Sky Sports News.
"The two years previously we've done OK, nothing spectacular. We finished 10th, which was the club's third-highest finish in 55 years.
"Then within two weeks (of the new season), all of a sudden you've lost the plot - that's the way it happens. I thought it was unfair but then again, I would say that.
"The most important for me is to get over it and learn from it, about how quickly things do change up here. But certainly, it's not going to derail me in my thoughts of exactly what we're trying to achieve."
