GUS POYET last night insisted he would not be biting his tongue in an attempt to appease Sunderland’s fans, but rejected claims his tactical inflexibility was proving damaging, claiming he had “adapted more than anyone could know”.

Poyet has found himself in the eye of a storm this week after his post-match comments in the wake of Tuesday’s 2-0 defeat to QPR were interpreted as another attack on a section of the club’s fans he has accused of wanting “kick and rush football” rather than his preferred passing style.

The Sunderland head coach, who takes his side to Bradford City in the FA Cup fifth round tomorrow, stands by his remarks, even though he maintains his displeasure was directed at his players, who underperformed so dramatically in the first half in particular, rather than the supporters.

However, he has ruled out steering clear of such controversies in the future, claiming he would rather win round his detractors through results and performances rather than stage-managed remarks that are designed solely to court favour.

“I agree that the relationship with the fans is very important, but you should know by now that I will not be basing my stay at the club around the fans,” said Poyet, who is hoping to welcome Jack Rodwell back into his starting line-up tomorrow. “I don’t think like that.

“I don’t go across the pitch to clap the fans after every away game just because I think that might help to stay an extra week. That is not me, I don’t care about that. If I clap the fans, it is because I respect them, and when things have been bad, like at Southampton, that is when I will stay.

“But it is all natural, not because it is what I think they want to see. And when I say things, that is natural too. Not because it is what I think they might want to hear. I want to convince the fans by playing football and winning, nothing else.

“That is the only way I want them to be convinced. Other managers might do things differently, but that is not me. I am not going to be coming up with a plan just to convince the fans. I want the fans to like me for us winning games first, and then for them slowly to start thinking that we have got something.

“We need to come up with a way to do that. I had an idea, but it is not working. So we need to find a way.”

That search for a functioning style has driven a wedge between Poyet and a growing band of Sunderland supporters in recent weeks, and while we are still some way away from public calls for the Uruguayan’s head, the reaction to this week’s events on social media suggests a deep-rooted unease at the current situation.

In the eyes of Poyet’s detractors, an obsession with a fluent passing style and the retention of possession has blinded the Black Cats head coach to the reality of a Sunderland side that does not boast the players required to mimic Arsenal or Barcelona.

References to ‘kick and rush football’ are a red herring, but it is justified to ask whether Poyet’s steadfast belief in a certain style is preventing him from considering alternative approaches that may be more suitable to the starting XI that has been lining up in recent weeks.

Poyet is not about to make any apologies for wanting his players to embrace his style, but he strongly refutes suggestions that he has been unwilling to adapt or make changes since taking over at the Stadium of Light.

“You cannot imagine how much I am adapting,” he said. “You cannot imagine how much I am having to change. How many times have we played out from the back in the last three months? Hardly ever, but we should really be playing every single ball.

“We’re not, and that’s because I am adapting because we can’t. We can’t, so we’re having to see if we can do something different. ‘Let’s put the big fella up there and hit it’, but then it becomes a 50-50 ball and depending on who wins it, the ball can go either way.

“We are so far away from my preferred situation. Before I came here, I was recognised for playing a certain style of football. Are we playing that football? No. Do I want to lose that recognition? No. I am going to fight it, but there is a process, and the process at the moment is that I have to do certain things differently.

“I thought it would be quicker, and that is my opinion. I thought it would be quicker because of the way I train, and the way I have convinced players in the past.

“We were getting better towards the end of last season and were trying to bring in players to play that way, and we started well. We drew two and lost one, and I was delighted with the way we were playing. But it looks like we have got to a point where we are no longer progressing and we are a little bit stuck.”