Why have Sunderland taken a goalkeeper on trial? Does pre-season matter? Your questions answered
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00:00Hello Sunland fans. Welcome to another edition of the On The Whistle YouTube series. Unfortunately
00:15my friend Phil Smith isn't available today to record the On The Whistle video. Many congratulations
00:22to him. He has just proposed to his partner Beth and thankfully she said yes. So Phil
00:27we wish you all the best. I think they're up in Edinburgh at the moment. Looking forward
00:31to seeing you as the new season starts. Another bit of housekeeping as well. Massive shout
00:36out to Ben Cook. It was his birthday today but not only was it his birthday, he actually
00:42ran 50 miles for the Bradley Lowry Foundation in between the stadiums of Sunderland, Middlesbrough
00:46and Newcastle. Absolutely monumental achievement Ben. Over the moon he managed to get it done
00:52and amazingly proud of that achievement. So Sunderland played today two pre-season
00:58Fredleys under new head coach Regis Lebrie. We won 5-0 at South Shields and then we lost
01:062-1 at Gateshead. Both Fredleys played on the same day. Lots of changes in between the
01:11squads and a lot of overlap as well in terms of the young players that came on. But I'm
01:15going to dive straight into it and I'm going to start answering some questions. Please
01:19bear with me. I'm not as good as Phil. I don't pretend to be as good as Phil but we're going
01:23to give it a stab. Let's see what we've got. Michael Bowers, friend of the On The Whistle
01:30series says how important is it for fans one way or another not to re-overreact to results?
01:36It's the first day of pre-season, there's still four weeks until the Cardiff game. I
01:40think this is a very pertinent point. I mentioned on social media I've seen Sunderland do well
01:46in Dortmund under David Moyes. We thought everything was going to be OK and then we
01:50got relegated that season. A social media user pointed out to me that we did very well
01:57under Paolo Di Cagno one pre-season and then it went badly wrong for him. You can't read
02:05too much in the pre-season. There's a lot at play in terms of topping up minutes, in
02:11terms of players coming back from the holidays. It's under a new manager, trying a different
02:19system, perhaps to what Mike Dodds and Michael Beale had. Different expectations, different
02:24roles. I think as well the Gateshead game today, you look at that midfield, the midfield
02:28that started, Embleton, Job and Mettete, don't get me wrong, that is a midfield that should
02:35be able to beat Gateshead. So it is a failure in that sense that they haven't been able
02:39to do so. But it's very unlikely that those three players are going to play together in
02:44a championship game. It was a little bit of an experiment. That wasn't Sunderland's strongest
02:48XI. Yes, they did have some big hitters out there, there's no denying that. Jack Clarke
02:54played and scored the penalty. Roosen cost Sunderland a lot of money, he managed to win
02:59the penalty. There were some big hitters there. O'Neill, the captain, Adgi Alesi. Yes, Sunderland
03:04probably fell well below their expected levels for a championship game. But it is only the
03:09second game. They've got a camp in Spain coming up. They've also got potentially another
03:16friendly in England after the Blackpool and Bradford game. So there is a long way to go.
03:22The proof will be in the puddle when the championship season rolls round. The South Shields game
03:27against lesser opposition at Busby says was a bit of a walk over. So I think to answer
03:31your question, Michael, you can't get too high and you can't get too low over pre-season.
03:36You've just got to sort of take it for what it is. It's about fitness. It's about building
03:39minutes up. And I'll use this example of last year. Last year, we did exactly the same thing.
03:44We played South Shields and Gateshead on the same day. We had signed a striker by the name
03:50of Hemiya. Hemiya played up front against South Shields. He looked very good. I was
03:55very impressed. I was ranting and raving about him. He ran the channel as well. And unfortunately,
04:00for whatever reason, that pre-season form didn't translate into success during Sunderland's
04:04regular championship season. So it is very hard to judge. There's a lot that can happen.
04:09And Regis Lebris, he's only a couple of weeks into the job as well. So there is that to
04:14contend with. Ethan Todd, another friend of the show and the Raw podcast said, who impressed
04:19you the most and who concerned you the most from both of today's games? I'm starting to
04:24sound a little bit like a Chris Rigg fanboy, but he really stood out for me today. His
04:30intensity for a friendly was almost a level above the rest of his teammates today. And
04:37that's not a knock on them. He just had the bit between his teeth. He's so eager and so
04:42young, so talented. He just wants to prove himself. It almost feels like now he's signed
04:47this three-year deal that he wants to prove himself again and let everybody know that
04:52he's worth it. He won the ball a couple of times in the middle today. And what's interesting
04:56as well is Regis Lebris played him central midfield along with Dan Meal. Now, cast your
05:00minds back to last season, Chris Rigg was played off the right-hand side. The role Patrick
05:05Roberts played today against South Shields off the right wing. That was to sort of minimise
05:08his impact in games because he was quite young and he is quite young and, you know, decision
05:12making if it's not on point can really let you down in the championship. So that was
05:17probably a move that needed to happen, but make no bones about it. Chris Rigg has signed
05:21at Sunderland for three years to play in his preferred position and to play regularly.
05:26So that really, really interests me, that Dan Meal, Chris Rigg sort of partnership,
05:31whether that could develop. I thought Adil Ushish off the front man was very good at
05:35South Shields. A shout out for Maiender as well, who did what he had to do. It was a
05:41good showing from the young striker. He's had a tough time of it, I think, going out
05:45on loan to Hames, not getting many games. He's come back, you know, adjusting to a new
05:49club, a new culture, a new country. Hopefully he can kick on. He is still very young. I
05:53would like to see Sunderland still sign somebody in that position. But he's absolutely impressed.
05:59You know, off the bench as well, Ben Crompton coming on, did well. Trey Hulme always looked
06:02lively. Patrick Roberts, good to see him score a goal. I think somebody mentioned that it
06:07had been over a year since he'd scored. So that was fantastic to see because if we can
06:13get Patrick Roberts back to full fitness and full speed, that would be amazing. Ethan also
06:20asked us a set-partners question. Who concerns you? I wouldn't say anybody particularly concerned
06:25me. You know, Metete didn't quite look up to scratch, but he had an injury at Oxford.
06:34His loan was cut short. So he's just coming back. Joe Bellingham, I think, had an off
06:40day against Gateshead. That's fair to say. I wouldn't say I'm overly concerned about
06:44him. I'm interested to see where Regis Lebrie plays him. He played as a number 10 today.
06:49But I think possibly his attributes aren't best suited to that at times. I think possibly
06:54as a number 10, he maybe slows the ball down a little bit when he doesn't have to. Whether
06:58he can work on that and improve on that, I'm not sure. So I'm interested to see what happens
07:01to Joe Bellingham. The caveat to that is that Joe Bellingham has got so much talent, so
07:06much raw power, raw pace, physical attributes. He is intelligent as a footballer as well.
07:12So I wouldn't say I'm overly concerned despite the bad performance in his pre-season at the
07:19end of the day. You know, O'Neill and Alessi didn't really cover themselves in too much
07:22glory. But again, it's just pre-season. Hopefully, they get back up to speed. Although I will
07:28say it was good to see Dennis Sergen back from his injury. Another little boost from
07:32Regis Lebrie. We know how good a player he can be when he's fit and firing. You know,
07:37Elliot Elmeldon as well. To answer Ethan's question, was I concerned by Elliot Elmeldon?
07:43No. Did he have a great game? No. But it was nice to see him playing back. People forget
07:48how long he's actually been out injured. So with all these players, there's little
07:52bits of caveats here and there. Nazri Roosan won the penalty. He didn't really impress
07:57me against Gateshead other than that, to be honest. But again, he's coming back from an
08:00injury that kept him out for a couple of games towards the back end of the season. Jefferson
08:04Bennett had that, you know, that unsatisfactory loan to Greece. That didn't work out. He picked
08:11up an injury towards the back end of his time. So he's just feeling his way back in. He looked
08:15bright in places, but it wasn't by any means the best game. So there's all these little
08:20caveats, I think, and I think possibly related to Michael's question as well. Just need to
08:26sort of relax about it a little bit. The proof is in the pudding at the end of the day when
08:29it comes to the championship. I would be more concerned if these sorts of types of performances
08:34become a habit in pre-season. But we'll have to wait and see. Terry asks, why do you think
08:41we haven't went for Kiefer Moore at two million pound asking price? All strikers today showed
08:48nothing to be impressed about. I understand your point, Terry, but I sort of disagree.
08:52I think Maender did have a good game, a promising game. I'm not saying he could reach the levels
08:56of Kiefer Moore this season. I don't think he would do that. But I think he did have
09:01a good game and show some positive signs. Roosan as well. I mentioned he was poor, but
09:06he did win the penalty. There's clearly a player there. Whether he's best suited off
09:10the left, which is a position Clarke's occupying at the moment, or whether he can play through
09:15the middle is another question. I think two million pounds for a 31-year-old. You've got
09:21to balance that and say, is it worth it? Could he potentially get you promoted? Is he the
09:24type of striker that you want or is wages going to be cumbersome? Probably all questions
09:28better suited to Christian Speakman. I know Sutton were obviously very keen to get him
09:33on loan, possibly even a permanent deal in January. That didn't happen. He went to Ipswich.
09:37He helped file out the promotion. They also had a lot of other good strikers, by the way.
09:42So it's a really tough one. Despite my understated performance, you've got to think that Sunderland
09:46will add experience to the striking department. They've got to. It's been a problem for so
09:53long and it actually predates Ross Stewart's exit from Sunderland. Sunderland needed a
09:58striker before Ross Stewart was injured and before Ross Stewart left because Ellis Sims
10:02was only a loanee. They have signed strikers, you must say, but it's been more an experience.
10:07So that is, it's for sure, Terry, a position that needs to be addressed. I would just slightly
10:12disagree with your statement that the two strikers that played today didn't show anything.
10:19I thought they did, albeit not something that would be enough to carry us into a championship
10:24season, if that makes sense. Peter asks, why did we have a keeper on trial? We have enough
10:30in the armory. This is a really, really, really interesting question. I've seen a lot
10:34of people ask it and it's an absolutely fair question. So the lad we have on loan from
10:39Stoke at the moment, his first name is Blondie. I can't quite pronounce his two last names.
10:45I'm not going to try. So for the purposes of this video, he's going to be called Blondie.
10:49He's on trial at the moment. There's been reports that he's been offered a deal. As
10:52I understand it, he hasn't signed that yet, although there's always a chance by the time
10:58this video goes out, that could have changed. So he's being sort of courted, if you will,
11:05because Sunderland are probably going to send a couple of their goalkeepers out on loan
11:09this season. Simon Moore has come in to be back up to Anthony Patterson to provide cover
11:14competition and add experience to the goalkeeper group. Anthony Patterson isn't expected to
11:21leave. The caveat to that is if a big club came in with a lot of money and an attractive
11:26deal for Anthony Patterson, then he could go. That is a possibility. But at the moment,
11:30as things stand, he's expected to stay. The players expected to stay. He's not pushing
11:34for a move. He's happy and settled and he's happy to be playing regular football. So you
11:39have Anthony Patterson, Simon Moore. Now you have that third goalkeeping spot, which could
11:43in theory be occupied by Matt Young, who was on loan at Darlington last season. Very highly
11:49rated England Youth International could be the next best thing. Now he's expected to
11:53go out on loan to an AFL club after doing really well at Darlington. That's the next
11:57stage in his development. So he's unlikely to be that number three pick. Dan Cameron
12:02has signed a professional deal at Sunderland. He's very, very young. He's probably going
12:07to play for the under 21s. And Robert Nicholls in his statement, the academy manager, when
12:12Dan Cameron signed, said they'd like to get him out on loan into the National League at
12:16some point. So we can expect that to happen. There's also Kelechi, another player whose
12:21last name I can't pronounce, the ex-Leicester City goalkeeper, Chibuetsi I think he's called.
12:27I'll have to ask that actually. He's more of an under 21 keeper. He will form part of
12:32the senior goalkeeping group at times. But he's not expected to sort of come in and compete
12:38to be a number two or a number one. So that leaves Adam Richardson. Adam Richardson, they
12:43were looking to loan him out before he was injured towards the back end of last season.
12:47When he played predominantly for the under 21s, as they got to the Premier League Two
12:51Cup final, they're going to be looking for another loan for him as well. So basically,
12:56if you loan those players out, they might not all go out on loan at once, but it could
13:00be at various points of the season. Matty Young, Dan Cameron, Adam Richardson, that
13:05would leave you with Kelechi playing for the under 21s and then Simon Moua and Anthony
13:11Patterson above him. So that would leave a few gaps up and down the system. Up throughout
13:17the age groups. So the former Stoke City man would just come in, provide a little bit
13:21of cover and competition, would allow Kelechi to play for the under 21s. Blondie, he could
13:26also play for the under 21s as well. And it would just be that little bit of insurance,
13:31a little bit of a goalkeeping sort of training signing and developmental signing, just as
13:36that little bit of protection to then allow Sunderland's young promising goalkeepers to
13:42go out on loan. But I completely understand the question because on the face of it, it
13:46does seem a bit puzzling, but I think it's more just as a sort of last resorts unfair,
13:53but just sort of a safety net and somebody to keep the current lads of the club on their
14:00toes. Mike Smith says any crack from Regis Lebrie? Well noticed Mike, but he hasn't done
14:06a post-match press conference or spoken to the media, but I believe he's going to do
14:11something with the club on Monday. So have a look out for that. My colleague Joe also
14:16spoke to a couple of players after the Gateshead game. So look out for that as well. Let's
14:22look at another question. Cam Rogers says, do you see Mainder getting a fair crack as
14:28backup if he kicks on? Also, do you think a mobile centre forward similar to him, but
14:35more polished will be targeted? I could see Mainder getting a fair crack. I don't see
14:42him being number one coming into the season. I would be disappointed if I saw him, if I
14:46saw him start for Sunderland come the beginning of the season, unless he starts to really
14:50rip up trees. I just think he's a little bit too, a little bit too inexperienced. Could
14:54he play back up to an experienced man? Yes, absolutely. Could he come on and start a couple
14:59of games, maybe rotate in and out? Yes, absolutely. But do I think we can hang our hat on my end
15:05at the moment? No. Could he form part of the squad? Yes. He could probably do with
15:10another loan, I'd imagine. So he plays week in, week out. I think a lot of people underestimate
15:14how important it is to play week in, week out. Matty Young was a brilliant example of
15:19that last year at Darlington, played week in, week out, really helped his development.
15:23We've seen it in Sunderland, Dan Neal, Anthony Patterson, Jack Clarke, Patrick Roberts, when
15:27they play week in, week out, it does improve them. So Mainder, I think, needs that experience.
15:34Will he sign a centre-forward? Absolutely, I think so. What form that centre-forward
15:39comes, I'm not sure. Cameron also asked, do you see Job knocking Adil Ashush, Brown, Neal
15:47or Rigg from that midfield three? I think he meant to include Ekwer as well. It's a
15:51really good question. Sunderland all of a sudden look like they have some decent options
15:55in the middle of the park. Alan Brown obviously didn't play against Gateshead or South Shield,
16:01so he's sort of working his way back to fitness after the summer. But yeah, it's a really
16:08interesting question on Brown. Is he going to play further forward or is it time in his
16:11career to now drop back? I'm not sure. Where does Regis Lebris see Job? Has that changed
16:16after the Gateshead game? I'm not really sure. There is competition for places. As I said
16:23earlier, I really like Neal and Rigg as that midfield two and Adil Ashush did look good
16:29as the number 10. So there's real options there now, albeit that was against lower league
16:33opposition. I've probably copped out of that question a little bit, but it is an interesting
16:37sort of caveat to Sunderland's pre-season so far. Let me just check to see if I've got
16:41any other questions. I've been talking now for 16 minutes, which is probably too long.
16:52I think that's about it actually. So yeah, thank you once again for listening and watching
16:56all of the videos. Thank you if you've made it this far through because England do play
17:00in the European Championship finals tomorrow. So if you're watching this video, I appreciate
17:05it because it's done well to cut through all of the noise surrounding that. Once again,
17:09congratulations to Phil, congratulations to Ben. You can catch all of our content over
17:14at the Sunderland Echo website. And yeah, thanks again for tuning in to this On The
17:18Whistle video.