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Sunderland’s play-off prepare had derailed in current weeks, struggling three consecutive defeats by the hands of Middlesbrough, Stoke Metropolis and Leicester Metropolis.
This alarming stoop in kind was a trigger for concern, nevertheless, that was eliminated on Saturday because the Black Cats romped to a 3-1 victory over Norwich City to maneuver to inside one level of sixth place Cardiff Metropolis.
Tony Mowbray has seen a number of stars shine this time period, together with fleet-footed winger Jack Clarke, who’s topic to Premier League interest, midfield maestro Dan Neil and stable centre-back Dan Ballard.
Sadly, one space that hasn’t seen a person stand out this time period is the striker place.
Because the departure of medical finisher Ross Stewart to Southampton in the summertime – who scored 40 goals in 80 games for the membership – neither Mason Burstow, Luis Semedo nor Nazariy Rusyn have taken the bull by the horns and stuffed the void left behind by the Scotsman.
Nazariy Rusyn’s season by numbers
When eyeing up replacements for Stewart in the summertime, as a substitute of splashing the money on one striker, Mowbray determined to unfold the funds throughout three totally different forwards.
Rusyn was signed from Zorya Lugansk for a reported €2.5m (£2.2m), Mason Burstow was acquired on loan from Chelsea and Luis Semedo arrived as a highly-rated striker from Benfica.
With a mix of tempo, power and one eye on objective between the aforementioned trio, Mowbray will need to have felt he had finished sufficient to resolve Sunderland’s goal-scoring conundrum.
Mason Burstow had scored ten goals in 25 Premier League 2 appearances for Chelsea final time period, whereas Rusyn plundered 21 goals in 49 matches for Zorya and Semedo was medical for Benfica’s U23s, netting 21 in 44 matches.
The above information level in direction of three medical strikers and on the time, it seemed as if the membership had finished some stable enterprise to prise three gifted children to the membership, nevertheless, 14 matches later and zero goals between them, that could not be any farther from the reality.
With frustrations ever-growing, Mowbray may use a number of the Stewart money to usher in one other striker in January, or he may unleash promising teenager, Harry Gardiner from the academy.
The 20-year-old has been scoring objectives for enjoyable in Premier League 2.
The participant who may exchange Nazariy Rusyn
Sunderland are accustomed to unearthing gifted children from their academy having thrown Dan Neil and 16-year-old Chris Rigg into the first-team set-up.
It’s, due to this fact, crucial that Mowbray continues to pluck children from the U21s and throw them into the senior staff, with Gardiner making a robust case to turn out to be the following academy revelation.
The medical finisher, who was nominated for September’s Player of the Month award in PL2 after bagging four goals in three games in opposition to Manchester United, Derby County and Aston Villa, has showcased his predatory instincts within the field.
After his exhausting work and sensational kind earned the popularity he deserved, U21’s supervisor Graeme Murty took to the Sunderland official website to discuss his progress.
He stated: “He’s in a wealthy vein of kind in the meanwhile. We’re continually bigging him up with humility and exhausting work. There’s a good group round him who will at all times look to feed him, particularly inside the world. We ask him to get in there and he’s very targeted on getting objectives.”
That excellent kind in September wasn’t out of the unusual for Gardiner. He is been tearing by way of opposition defences for years now, having posted 18 goals in 47 appearances throughout Sunderland’s underage teams.
Hailed by journalist Josh Bunting as “excellent” for his kind final time period, the younger striker is banging down Mowbray’s door for a first-team alternative and if his present crop of strikers proceed to fireside blanks, he’ll don’t have any different selection however to unleash the highly effective poacher.
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