Would you believe it, it’s now more than four years since Sunderland’s gut wrenching play-off final defeat to Charlton. Needless to say, a lot has changed since then and the Lads are now a division above the Addicks. I thought it would be interesting to go through each player and look at how their careers have panned out since that day. https://www.a-love-supreme.com/single-post/charlton-2019-where-are-they-now JON MCLAUGHLIN The Scottish goalkeeper was arguably our best player that season, and his amazing play-off semi-final saves got the Lads to the final. But, McLaughlin would only spend one more year on Wearside before leaving the club for Scottish giants Rangers in 2020. Many fans were gutted to see the back of the shot-stopper (for a free as well - we refused to give Big Jon a well-earned pay rise) and this led to more people turning on Madrox. Especially considering he came out and said he wanted to stay a few months prior. He has mainly been a number two at Rangers, playing backup to the excellent Allan McGregor, but he has made five Champions League appearances this season. He's picked up a few medals in Glasgow, including the 20/21 Scottish Premiership. However, he is far from a fan favourite and it looks like Jon could be leaving the club this summer. Maybe a move back to League One would be good for him, he is a solid goalkeeper at that level. LUKE O’NIEN The only player who featured that is still at the club, he is the final survivor of the players Madrox signed. As they say, a broken clock is right twice a day and signing O’Nien was one of the few things the Madrox regime got right. He has been a regular in the side over the last four years, playing various different roles. O’Nien got in the 2020/21 League One team of the season, and has won both the Papa John’s Trophy and League One play-offs with the club. Not to mention, he was named North East Writers Association’s Personality of the Year award in 2021. This season O’Nien has proven that he can play in the Championship and he is now a fan favourite. TOM FLANAGAN The same can’t really be said about Flanagan though- he served his purpose as a League One centre back, but he will forever be associated with dark times. It’s not his fault really, he tried his best and to be fair he played his best football in the first half of the 21/22 campaign under Lee Johnson. He left the club for Shrewsbury in January 2022 (sold to make wages for Defoe apparently...) and he has been a regular there ever since. He even scored at the Stadium of Light against us in that dramatic 3-2 win. I’d definitely say he’s found his level and matured as when he was at Sunderland, he did have a tendency to make silly challenges at times. ALIM OZTURK Ozturk certainly wasn’t really a world beater whilst he was here, he started really poorly, was frozen out of the squad but then suddenly improved and became a solid centre half for the level. Like McLaughlin, the Turk left the club in summer 2020 after falling out of favour. He has since gone back to Turkey and played for Umraniye before moving to Samsunspore. He seems to have settled there and is now a first team regular. Good for him. BRYAN OVIEDO The Costa Rican left Wearside in July 2019 after the club failed to win promotion from League One. Oviedo was a part of back-to-back relegations and two failed Wembley trips. He is definitely viewed in a more positive light compared to other players in that era, even though for his pay packet he really should have stood out more in League One. He returned to FC Copenhagen for three seasons, before moving to MLS side Real Salt Lake in August 2022. He currently still plays for the club. GRANT LEADBITTER The boyhood Mackem spent two more years at the club, before retiring at the age of 35. He was a quality addition to our midfield, even if his legs had gone, and every fan liked him. He is now a part of the Middlesbrough academy coaching staff as an individual development coach. A well liked player who will always be welcome at Sunderland. please log in to view this image LEE CATTERMOLE Cattermole enjoyed a long 10-year stay on Wearside, and was well liked by many fans. He was really well known for his crunching tackles, especially the one on Jack Colback. He left the club right after the play-off final and signed for Eredivisie side VVV Venlo. He spent one season there before retiring at the age of 32. He has since coached the Middlesbrough youth team and is now pursuing his next steps in the world of coaching. MAX POWER Another former captain, the man with the greatest name in football left the club in the summer of 2021, with his greatest achievement at the club being a Papa John’s Trophy win. He had some nice dance moves to be fair. Power returned to the Latics in 2021 and played a big role in winning the League one title. However, it’s all gone downhill from there and Wigan will begin next season in League One with minus 8 points. Maybe a move away from Wigan would do him good, but I could say that about all of their players at the moment. GEORGE HONEYMAN Just like Cattermole, Honeyman left the club right after the play-off final. He signed for Hull City and despite being relegated in his first season, he was able to have a good time there winning the League One title at the first time of asking. He has since moved to Millwall and still plays there now. It’s a good move for him in my opinion. He was a decent player whilst he was here and would always give his all. CHRIS MAGUIRE The King was an enigmatic forward for Sunderland, but was loved for showing up on the biggest occasions - with his strike against Portsmouth getting the Lads to the play-off final. However, everything has gone downhill for him since leaving the club. He wasn’t amazing for the Imps, despite scoring a hat trick against us at the SoL. An alleged betting scandal got him released from Lincoln and he now plays for Ayr United. He even had a brief and unsuccessful spell with Hartlepool. He definitely peaked on Wearside. CHARLIE WYKE Despite a poor first few years, Wyke’s final year at the club was amazing. He scored 31 goals in all competitions, which surprised every Sunderland fan at the time. Although I could probably score 30 goals in League One if I had Aiden McGeady putting crosses on a plate for me! He left the club to join Wigan in 2021, but a cardiac arrest ruined his first season. Thankfully, he is now fit and well. He did score at the Stadium of Light earlier this season, so good for him. If he’s available he will be a good player to help Wigan survive next season. LEWIS MORGAN The Scot was only here for a short amount of time and I can't remember him doing anything in red and white, but he has since moved to America. He played two seasons at Inter Miami before moving to the New York Red Bulls. He was impressive last season, scoring 15 goals. However, he hasn’t been as clinical so far this season. WILL GRIGG A person who again hasn’t had a great season is Will Grigg, who has now been relegated with MK Dons. He could be a goal machine in League Two, but once upon a time he was highly rated. Grigg is a prime example of why you sign players who want to play for your club, not players who have had their heads turned by money. He was great at Wigan though and his chant is iconic, even if he's a figure of everything that went wrong during our League One era. AIDEN MCGEADY McGeady was a great player for Sunderland, and he was the best of a bad bunch. However, problems with Phil Parkinson definitely put a dampener on his time here. He returned to the side under Lee Johnson and got the most assists in the 20/21 League One season. His partnership with Wyke was amazing for a few months. The winger got promoted with the club in 21/22 and it was a great way for him to go out. He linked back up with Lee Johnson at Hibernian, but injuries have ruined his time at Easter Road. The Irishman has since been released by Hibs and I wouldn’t be surprised if he retires. He is now 37 years old, but the McGeady spin will forever be great.
Still can't get over Maguire being called "The King"! Good on his day but those were few and far between
Nothing worse than a player with obvious talent who just can't be bothered ... ... give me Dean Windass any day, very little natural ability but always came off exhausted.
