Sunderland’s Under-21 side continued their race for the title with a 2-0 win over Southampton this evening. Duncan Watmore scored from the penalty spot after George Brady scored early on in the game.
The 21’s side sit at the top of the league, which begs the question, why on earth aren’t they playing at the top level?
It’s not a secret that Sunderland have struggled this season, with certain players looking very poor and others looking uninterested. Duncan Watmore is the only player from the 21’s to feature for the Black Cats in the league so far this season. But since Watmore’s illness which ruled him out of the away trip at Bournemouth, he hasn’t even been in the squad.
Since his illness, Watmore has scored a hat-trick against Manchester City’s U-21’s side and netted again tonight, but doesn’t seem to be in Advocaat’s plans anymore. Other youngsters have impressed, and with Sunderland occupying the bottom place, a place they are very familiar with, why doesn’t Advocaat try everything possible to sort out this mess.
It’s a common thought of any football fan, that given the chance, youngsters will give their all and try their hardest. That’s exactly what Watmore has done during all of his opportunities, including his goal against Exeter in the Capital One Cup second round, in which he ran down a hopeless ball, snatched it just before the ‘keeper and netted. Why Advocaat isn’t giving any youngsters a chance is absolutely beyond me.
Look around the team, there is a handful of players who don’t deserve their starting position but have little competition in that position. Defoe has been poor recently, as has Adam Johnson, but Watmore offers something that the only other player that offers is Fabio Borini. Both players give their all during every game, tracking back and going forward, and that is exactly what The Black Cats need.
Personally, I believe we have absolutely nothing to lose when coming up against West Ham at the weekend. West Ham are renowned for playing superbly away from home, with wins at The Emirates, Anfield and The Etihad this season alone. Surely it’s a certainty for a West Ham win. But with that in mind, why not take this coming game as an opportunity to see what youngsters can offer? Watmore deserves a chance especially, and Lyndon Gooch is very highly rated. Dick should give them a chance, and see what they can do. Surely they can’t be worse than what we’ve seen already this season.
