Sunderland fans might well have been fearing another middle-of-the-road season was going to be coming their team’s way, with an unknown entity in Regis Le Bris entering the dug-out tasked with getting the best out of a largely inexperienced camp of players.
Yet, fast forward to November and the Black Cats sit top of the tree in the Championship, with a very impressive record of nine wins picked up from 15 games.
This is an even more commendable feat when you consider Jack Clarke is no longer on the books of the Wearside outfit, who heavily relied on their ex-star winger to conjure up moments of magic when he still donned a Sunderland strip to get the team out of some sticky situations.
Clarke’s time at Sunderland
It was always going to be a tall order for Sunderland to keep hold of Clarke over the summer, especially when you look back at how sublime the attacker was last season, even as his side made do with a lowly 16th-placed finish.
The former Tottenham Hotspur man lit up the Championship with electric displays displays, bagging 15 goals and four assists from 40 second-tier appearances, which included hammering home one fierce strike against Ipswich Town.
Funnily enough, Clarke ended up joining Ipswich after inflicting damage onto Kieran McKenna’s men, with the Tractor Boys winning their desired target for a fee of £15m.
Fans that go week in week out to the Stadium of Light must have been worrying how much Clarke’s absence would be felt this season, but Le Bris’ side clearly have licked their wounds well, whilst their former star continues to grow accustomed to life in Suffolk.
Sunderland could now be preparing to sell on another of their top performers very soon, and he could even go for more than the touted £15m next to Clarke’s name.
The star who could be sold for more than Clarke
There is some truth in the fact Chris Rigg looks to be one starlet who could go for more than this bumper amount one day, with talk suggesting £30m could be enough to win the teenager’s service if and when he leaves.
But, that seems unlikely to happen this coming January, with a major switch like this for Rigg feeling premature.
Whereas, Jobe Bellingham might be ready to leave the nest very soon to become an expensive superstar.
Sunderland results since Bellingham’s red card | |
|---|---|
Match | Result |
1. Sunderland vs Coventry City | 2-2 D |
2. Preston North End vs Sunderland | 0-0 D |
3. Queens Park Rangers vs Sunderland | 0-0 D |
Sourced by BBC Sport | |
It’s clear from Sunderland’s last couple of Championship results that Bellingham’s absence has been felt, with the Black Cats just about surviving versus QPR in the game he was sent off in, whilst Le Bris’ side only created one big chance versus Preston when Bellingham was completely missing from action.
The 19-year-old hadn’t set the world alight this season when playing regularly under Le Bris, with just two goals and one assist tallied up in the league, but they will be craving his return when the Black Cats come back from the international break.
He has more than proven himself to be a top buy on the whole, with seven league strikes managed during this debut season at the Stadium of Light, after costing what could soon look like a bargain £3m to obtain from Birmingham City.
Former Black Cats boss Tony Mowbray even labelled Bellingham as an “absolute diamond” when overseeing his development on Wearside, with reports now suggesting that the promising attacking midfielder is valued in and around the £21m region, which is way up for the £3m they forked out just two years ago.
With sumptuous strikes like the one above up his sleeve, it does feel like only a matter of time before Bellingham gets a chance to strut this stuff in the big time, potentially costing more than Clarke in the process.
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Sunderland could arguably do with this former star’s experience right now.
