Could Régis Le Bris become Sunderland’s own rotator-in-chief?
Leeds away, and we were just a few minutes away from what I deemed would be a fair result.
It hurts that we conceded so late again and that we fell short during a crucial game in our pursuit of automatic promotion, but what has Monday’s result told us, and what did we learn?
Leeds United FC v Sunderland AFC – Sky Bet Championship
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With this result, Leeds have all but secured a top two place.
They’re now ten points clear of us, with Sheffield United eight points ahead. It seems that we only have an outside chance of automatic promotion, but as we have such a healthy gap to fifth and sixth, it would seem highly likely at this point that the playoffs are calling — barring a meltdown.
If we’re destined for the playoffs, surely it would be sensible to start the planning.
To my mind, it would now seem appropriate to rest some of our key first teamers and get our squad players some valuable minutes. We could possibly have three cup finals come May, and having everyone fit, rested, and ready should be the aim.
Watford FC v Sunderland AFC – Sky Bet Championship
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At Leeds, we eventually tired — Chris Rigg in particular.
This isn’t a slight on his ability but he’s seventeen and surely can’t be expected to play forty-odd games without a rest.
Jobe and Dan Neil will also need a rest at some point as they’ve played a lot of games and we don’t want them to burn out. Surely it may be wise to give these key players a couple of weeks off in the not-too-distant future. They need it, and we need them purring when we get to May.
With these players resting, it would allow us to give some much-needed minutes to Alan Browne, Milan Aleksić, and Salis Abdul Samed.
Joe Rothwell changed the game for Leeds on Monday, and maybe one of the aforementioned players could do the same for us? My main concern, as always, is keeping our players fit. We’re very light at full back and an injury to either Trai Hume or Dennis Cirkin could leave us very short.
On the upside, Ian Poveda looked good during his cameo on Monday evening.
I’m hoping this can be the start of his Sunderland career and I feel like we need another option on the right to give the opposition something else to think about if we need to.
We gave him an initial three-year deal and his attitude is obviously a problem, but you get the feeling that’s what makes him a bit of enigmatic talent.
The question is whether his attitude will get him into further trouble and hamper his time here. The group of players we’ve accumulated seems honest and committed — two attributes Poveda has recently shown he lacks.
Leeds United FC v Sunderland AFC – Sky Bet Championship
Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images
Although the result on Monday and how we lost the game at the death hurts, I feel like this young team has shown us throughout the season that they can get better no matter what’s thrown at them. We have thirteen games of the regular season left and with Romaine Mundle and Tommy Watson regaining fitness, we have some time to get them up to speed.
There’s some breathing space between ourselves and the rest of the pack, so we need to start resting certain players to ensure they’re fully fit for the run in and playoffs.
We have to start rotating and using peripheral figures in order to get them minutes, with Rothwell and Pascal Struijk proving on Monday that bringing quality off the bench with twenty minutes remaining can win you a game of football.
So, can we learn from Monday?
Having a bench of quality options who are up to speed with the demands of high-intensity football along with youthful players who are full of energy can help you win games at this level.
We have the opportunity to do so in the remaining games and I hope Régis Le Bris can tinker in order to help us achieve our goal of promotion.
