Cameron Jerome took to his Twitter account in the early hours to criticise Sunderland AFC - just hours after helping sink them to a third-straight defeat.

Jerome signed for Milton Keynes Dons earlier this season having spent his last few years playing in Turkey, and linked-up with his former Norwich City team-mate Russell Martin, who now manages the Dons.

Sunderland took the lead through Max Power in the 12th minute but Jerome equalised just four minutes later, before Scott Fraser's second half penalty saw the Dons travel back to Buckinghamshire with all three points.

If Sunderland fans weren't already annoyed enough at the teams performance, they were even more wound up when they saw what Jerome had tweeted at 1:30am.

"Don't often tweet but let me throw something out there!! Maybe a nibble maybe tongue in cheek," Jerome said.

"Poor poor side with average players for the league. It's time to accept your now a bang average league 1 team now. Glory days have gone. #let it go #Sunderland."

Jerome's tweet-and-delete wasn't quick enough, as a screenshot was captured and many Sunderland fans have now seen what he had to say.

The Verdict

No doubt Jerome tweeted for a reaction, and who knows why he swiftly deleted it, but is he that wide of the mark?

Sunderland are still a big club historically, but they're struggling to get out of the third tier of English football, much like Leeds United did initially when they were relegated in 2007.

Some Black Cats fans will probably agree with the general consensus of his tweet - they're underperforming for the size of the club but on paper.

Their squad isn't really the strongest and whoever the manager is going forward, whether it be Phil Parkinson or someone else, will have a battle on their hands to get the club promoted this season.