Five options to help Sunderland solve crippling striker shortage
This season has, without doubt been a progressive one for Sunderland, even if it maybe doesn’t feel like it right now.
It can sometimes be easy to forget Sunderland were in League One last season, but that is testament to just how well the players have done and the kind of quality football they have produced for the most part.
It’s just gone a bit wrong lately, hasn’t it? The Ross Stewart injury, the failure to replace him, the injury-time equaliser conceded against Bristol City, then three defeats in a row – the latter of which being especially horrendous on the eye.
Tony Mowbray is looking and sounding increasingly exasperated too. He has mentioned a couple of times now that, due to there being just one natural striker at the club and him being out with a long-term injury, he doesn’t feel like he has the tools to properly compete.
What are his options, though? Let’s have a look at a few.
Shift Jack Clarke
The most obvious thing to try right now would be to move Jack Clarke from the wing to a central position.
There are obvious advantages to that as it will provide a genuine threat in behind defences and disrupt the opposition’s high press. At the moment, teams know they can confidently squeeze up on Sunderland without any real risk.
The downside, of course, is that you’d be taking one of the team’s most form players and disrupting his rhythm, and that is never a particularly sensible thing to do. There would also be the question of who would come into the side on the left-hand side to replace Clarke. Presumably that would be Jewison Bennette.
Make the midfield more physical
If you are struggling to play your way through a midfield, the other option is to try and bundle your way through them with raw physicality.
Edouard Michut is a very talented technical player but he can be easily bullied at this stage of his career. Without a centre forward, that does mean he can be a weak link, physically, when the game is being bogged down in midfield.
Perhaps, then, Luke O’Nien or Pierre Ekwah could be brought in to beef up that central area of this pitch and help Sunderland win more second balls. It’s certainly one option worth considering as it would help Sunderland push more players forward.
The Luke O’Nien option
I think the option that everyone is surprised hasn’t be tried yet is Luke O’Nien as a striker. It has been discussed apparently, at least to the point he has told Tony Mowbray he will score 15 goals a season there!
He almost certainly wouldn’t, of course, but he wouldn’t need to. He would really just need to make a total nuisance of himself, push defenders back a little, get himself in the box and create some space for the more talented players behind him.
That is absolutely in his locker and, after all, it has worked before for the likes of Paul Warhusrt and Chris Sutton, so why not at least give it a try?
Drop Gelhardt deeper
It’s hard to not feel some sympathy for Joe Gelhadrt. Yes, he has not especially impressed, but he is being asked to come to a new club, play an unfamiliar position and pick up the goalscoring burden from one of the very best strikers in the division.
We’ve probably now seen enough to know he isn’t going to comfortable, or confident, playing as a lone striker any time soon, but that doesn’t mean he has to be a write off.
He would be dropped deeper into his much more natural number ten position, or asked to play from the left with Clarke moving up front.
There is definitely a lot of talent in there somewhere and he shouldn’t just be continually shoved up front when he could be a massive asset in another position.
Is Bennette worth a try?
It’s probably not especially fair to place a great deal of expectation on Jewison Bennette. He is a teenager who struggles with the language, playing his first season in England.
Adding a fresh challenge of playing an unnatural position would probably be too much, but is it worth at least considering?
After all, he is lightning quick and surprisingly physical given his age. He would definitely threaten in behind and maybe there is a striker in there somewhere?
It’s actually very hard to say given how little we have seen of him, but it has to be an option.
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