‘Watmore is not guaranteed to start after Norwich cameo,’ Advocaat admitted.
On the other hand, after a depressing 3-1 defeat to Norwich, Sunderland fans established that from now on, Duncan Watmore should be at least utilised as an impact sub and not just an un-used benched outcast. At the end of the last campaign, Dick Advocaat confessed that he didn’t want to “throw him in at the deep end” during the midst of a relegation battle; and throughout pre-season, Watmore didn’t feature much at all. However, from Saturday’s defeat, Watmore proved to be the bright light at the end of a very dark tunnel and underlined to all Sunderland fans that he deserves to be given a lot more than just a brief 5 minutes at the end of a match every now and again.
Let’s face it, the match was already done and dusted before the under-21 Player of the Year came on, but that didn’t stop the Premier League debutant’s desire to show more energy and hunger in his cameo compared to the other recluses on the pitch in red and white. The appetite of the debutant was something to be admired, and that was imminently rewarded, as he capped off his short-lived debut with a goal.
As an impact sub, Watmore showed he can cause defensive players real problems, and the reasons why (providing the games aren’t already lost) is that the pace and directness of his play will put tired defenders on the back foot. On Saturday, the under-21 International got a huge roar from the crowd because they knew what he had to offer and they were just desperately waiting in anticipation for his long-awaited debut.
Now that he has capped off his restricted debut with a goal, surely Dick Advocaat must be thinking of utilising Watmore with much more game-time than what has previously been given to him. The potential of Duncan Watmore and Jeremain Lens on the wings for Sunderland would be a great breath of fresh air to Sunderland fans as it screams out what they have missed for years-upon-years, pace. Lens hasn’t lived up to the exceptions of Sunderland fans, neither have the rest of his team-mates, but with the potential inclusion of Watmore – maybe it’s the bright spark they need to build a platform.
