Starting XI: One change predicted for Sunderland versus Watford this afternoon
Yesterday at 01:00 AM
Eliezer Mayenda's rumoured to have a knock that will keep him out today – so who'll replace him?
We played well against Boro last week, and I thought it was interesting that Regis Le Bris talked about certain things we hadn't done well enough. His constant drive for improvement is great to see. Selection-wise, if you're purely basing it off performances over the last couple of weeks, there's only really Dan Neil who is at risk of being dropped (when Samed is match fit that risk will grow significantly stronger). However, we don't see what's happening in training, which will naturally influence things, too, so at some point, we may get a surprise or two come an hour before kick-off. With three games coming up in seven days, that point may not be too far away, but I don't foresee any major surprises come 2pm today.
It is rumoured that Eliezer Mayenda is out with a knock, which will be a shame as overall he's been doing a good job, but it presents a chance for someone else to come in to lead the line.
Goalkeeper: Anthony Patterson
After a busy day at Plymouth, Patterson had a quiet afternoon against the Boro, who didn't have a meaningful effort that he had to save. Hopefully another quiet afternoon ahead today.
Defence: Trai Hume, Chris Mepham, Luke O'Nien, Dennis Cirkin
Chris Mepham had an excellent debut last week and strode through the game as you'd expect a Premier League and international player to. Hume, Cirkin and O'Nien were great again too, and should start today. Hume could have been sent off at the weekend – I think it was a borderline one rather than a definite one he could away with, but his yellow means he's already one booking off a suspension – it'll be interesting to see if that plays on his mind today.
Midfield: Dan Neil, Jobe, Chris Rigg
Alan Browne could come back into the reckoning today, but I don't foresee any changes here today, after the performances Jobe and Rigg put in last week. That said, I think we might see one of them – most likely Rigg – rested against Derby in midweek. And, with Brown, Aleksic and Samed waiting in the wings, performances have to justify selection.
Attack: Patrick Roberts, Wilson Isidor, Romaine Mundle
Mundle, Roberts and Mayenda all played well last weekend, but if the rumours of an injury to Mayenda are true, we will see a change up top. Interestingly, when discussing the signing of Aaron Connolly, Le Bris said we only had two strikers – Mayenda and Rusyn – which is why Connolly was brought in, but Isidor can clearly play there. He replaced Mayenda up top against Plymouth when we needed a goal, leaving Rusyn on the bench, and he's shown already he has plenty to offer. It'll be good to see him get a start, and hopefully he can get on the scoresheet, too.
