Sunderland could have their next Clarke in “phenomenal” ace

Sunderland followers would have been fearing one other season within the Championship that resembled a lot of final marketing campaign’s shambles, because the Black Cats’ inconsistencies acquired the higher of them once more in such an unforgiving division.

However, the Wearside outfit – heading into a busy December fixture schedule – stay in and across the high spot within the unpredictable league, with Regis Le Bris’ appointment working wonders on the younger and hungry sections of the Sunderland workforce.

Even when outcomes have not at all times been going their manner, the youthful Championship promotion candidates have managed to come back out the opposite facet stronger for it, with a lot of key performers protruding thus far.

Key Sunderland performers this season

It isn’t solely the inexperienced heads which are excelling underneath the contemporary managerial strategies of Le Bris, with the likes of Patrick Roberts protruding just lately when being thrown again into the XI in opposition to Stoke Metropolis.

Earlier than beating the Potters on the Stadium of Gentle, Sunderland had been winless in seven, however with the 27-year-old again on the proper wing, a 2-1 victory was secured.

He would roll again the years with a daring show on the proper channel, notching up three successful dribbles, alongside additionally aiding his facet’s essential winner late on.

Transferring away from this necessary three factors in isolation, each Luke O’Nien and Trai Hume have additionally shone as extra seasoned members of the group throughout the course of the season so far, while each Jobe Bellingham and Chris Rigg proceed to flourish as extra uncooked figures nonetheless studying the ropes.

This easy end from Rigg in opposition to Leeds United again in October was simply considered one of three strikes he is managed in league motion, regardless of solely being 17, while Bellingham – who is just two years his senior – has three assists next to his name alongside three objectives.

However, there’s one other teenager who’s starting to make waves within the senior combine away from these named, who might effectively be Sunderland’s subsequent Jack Clarke if he continues to acclimatise effectively to the brilliant lights of the principle workforce.

Sunderland’s subsequent Jack Clarke

There should be one thing within the water on Wearside relating to producing top-quality kids via the membership’s youth system, with Tom Watson the following tipped for greatness.

Le Bris had been to made to depend on the 18-year-old on the left flank in latest weeks owing to his squad trying slightly naked bones, which noticed first-team common Romaine Mundle pull up with a severe hamstring problem in November, leaving his choices on the left trying depleted.

This might’ve been an understandably irritating improvement for Le Bris to wrestle with, contemplating Mundle himself had taken to the strain of changing the mercurial Clarke effectively, with an impressive four goals and two assists picked up from 16 second-tier clashes.

With out him, the Frenchman must assume on his ft and he has been rewarded together with his boldness in throwing Watson into the first-team image extra commonly, based mostly solely on his gorgeous latest efficiency in opposition to Stoke.

He would single-handedly information his boyhood workforce to that pivotal three factors, together with his first very paying homage to Clarke in his prime donning Sunderland pink and white, having positioned an effort coolly previous the Potters ‘keeper after a pacey dart ahead.

Watson’s second late on would ship the Stadium of Gentle lots into raptures too, with this standout exhibiting seeing EFL content material creator Ryan Dilks even hail {the teenager} as one other “phenomenal” ace off the Sunderland manufacturing line.

It’ll have felt like a very long time coming for Watson to lastly explode into life in the principle workforce, when glancing on the loopy numbers he has managed at youth degree up to now.

Sadly for the Black Cats, they did should do with out Watson final match at Swansea Metropolis, with it now coming to gentle that their homegrown ace may very well be out for as much as two months owing to injury.

However – when he does return – he will not need his gorgeous exhibiting in opposition to Stoke to be only one fluke memorable show, as he goals to determine himself as a key a part of the jigsaw underneath Le Bris in 2025.

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