Which Sunderland players have improved most notably under Régis Le Bris?

Today at 01:00 AM

Sunderland's strong start has seen many players raise their game under the Frenchman, but who's really caught the eye during the opening months of the season?

Martin Wanless says…

It's a difficult question to answer and while I agree with Malc that Romaine Mundle's been impressive this season, we barely saw him last season.

Dennis Cirkin's been my player of the season so far (with Jobe a close second) but is his form an improvement due to Le Bris or simply because he's fit? Probably the latter.

So, my choice is likely to be controversial one, as it seems to be in vogue to criticise this lad at the moment, but the player who's improved most under Le Bris this season - compared to last - is Patrick Roberts.

Yes, people will immediately throw stats at this one, but if he was assisting and scoring a lot more, he'd be playing in the Premier League. And yes, we've seen glimpses of strong form from him before, but last season he struggled.

For me, he's been key for us in many games this season due to his ability to link up play- forming the triangles with Chris Rigg and Trai Hume, and their interplay on many occasions has been fantastic to watch and reminiscent of when Amad was linking up with Roberts in a similar way.

He's also very important to us in holding the ball up, allowing runners to get into space, and driving us into different positions by carrying the ball forward.

Yes, he's not perfect and yes, he's had dips in form, but you saw against Preston the difference Roberts makes when he's on the field.

Le Bris seems to have found a role in a system that suits him, and my prediction is once he's had his enforced two-week break, we'll see Roberts in some strong form approaching Christmas.

John Wilson says…

It's a good question, and difficult to answer from the perspective of how do we know a player has improved because of Le Bris, or were they on that trajectory anyway?

Simply from the point of view of who's improved the most this season, I'd have to say Jobe Bellingham.

Last season, he was a little too lightweight and at times it felt like if you blew on him, he would fall over. There was also a strong consensus that he was overplayed, and he'd become slow and lethargic.

This season has seen the emergence of a new Jobe. Stronger, faster, more confident, and it's certainly easier to see how he might be able to compete with his brother one day.

One thing you can praise Le Bris for in regard to Bellingham's improved performances is that he quickly identified where he wanted to play him, and has stuck with his central attacking position.

Last season, he almost became an odd job man when popping up in different areas. His new consistent position has allowed him to become familiar with this role, and to grow in self-assuredness and awareness.

Malc Dugdale says…

I think one of the most improved players has to be Romaine Mundle.

Granted, he didn't have much of a sniff before the exit of Jack Clarke, but no one can say he's done anything other than grab the chance with both hands, and under the guidance of Le Bris, he now has some of the best stats for a wide man in this league.

He has a great eye for goal, his pace is admirable and used effectively the majority of the time, and on a good day he's very hard for opponents to neutralise.

With one of the best defenders in the league overlapping and contributing goals (a 'goal of the month' contender, no less), the left side of our team has rarely looked as hot as it is now.

Whereas Clarke is struggling to impress Ipswich fans most of the time, Mundle is becoming one of the first names on the sheet and is no doubt being closely monitored by many.

His recent injury has come at a terrible time, but I'm very confident that he'll come back stronger, to really help us kick on to the tail end of the campaign.