Sunderland boss reveals plan to help January additions step into first team picture

Sunderland will use January signings Isaac Lihadji and Joe Anderson in the under-21s while they await a chance in the first team, Tony Mowbray has confirmed.

While Joe Gelhardt and Pierre Ekwah have been used regularly in the Sunderland first team since arriving last month, Anderson and Lihadji have been frustrated in their efforts to get game time.

They have played just 20 minutes between them, with Lihadji accounting for three quarters of that.

The Frenchman has also played an under-21s game though, and while Anderson is yet to do that, Mowbray says it is something they will have to look at soon.

"The team has been doing alright, so there's no urgency to change everything and put them in, but footballers should want to play football," Mowbray said.

"Joe Anderson will come into that category, where he'll be playing for the 21s every now and again, but not every game. He's not here to play 21s football, they're here to try and break into the first team.

"But you can't let weeks and weeks and weeks roll by without any football, so there will be the odd game where we drop them in."

Anderson has Dan Ballard, Danny Batth, Luke O’Nien and probably Aji Alese ahead of him in the centre back pecking order, so it’s clear he will have to be patient.

Lihadji, meanwhile, plays the same position as Patrick Roberts and Amad Diallo, so his immediate path to first-team football is looking very tough at the moment.

Amad will be leaving Sunderland in the summer, though, so Lihadji is expected to slot into his role once the Man Utd winger’s loan is complete.

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