Interesting read... https://rokerreport.sbnation.com/20...ave-the-attributes-required-to-lead-this-team It says . . . . It is no overstatement to suggest that Sunderland AFC faces a multitude of questions at the present moment. As the season enters its final stages, thoughts are already turning to questions such as: Who stays and goes in the summer? and Is Alex Neil the right man, even if we don’t get promoted?. One question that I believe can be addressed with an eye on next season, however, is the issue of captaincy, and I won’t beat about the bush here: I believe that the notion of a ‘leadership group’ was one of the worst ideas that Lee Johnson tried to implement during his time at the club, and it should be consigned to the scrap heap as soon as this season is over. I’ve always been a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to such matters, and whereas a ‘leadership group’ may work in sports like rugby, I think that football demands a different approach – particularly for where we are at this moment in time. I feel very strongly about this, because in 26 years of supporting the club, I have seldom, if ever, seen a captain whose influence on matches is as minimal as Corry Evans. Sometimes if you don’t really notice a player’s presence during a game that is not a bad thing, because it might mean that they are simply going about their business efficiently, but in the case of the Northern Ireland international, it is a problem that has been noticeable for some time. After the recent home game against Crewe, I described Evans as having ‘hidden’ during the game. I did so reluctantly because the ‘cowardly’ label is something I do not like to affix to Sunderland players, but when you see your skipper so reluctant to exert his influence, and seemingly unsure as to how to galvanise and rally his teammates, what else can you say? please log in to view this image Photo by Mark Fletcher/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images When he joined the club last summer, Evans, brother of ex-Sunderland defender Jonny, seemed to tick a number of boxes. He was a well-travelled and experienced player, with international caps under his belt, and in theory he felt like a good fit to slot in alongside the multitude of younger players that we had recruited. Unfortunately, it certainly hasn’t worked out that way, because Evans’ time on Wearside has been a story of patchy form and a litany of disappointments. It isn’t as though he hasn’t been given a fair chance, either, as both Alex Neil and Lee Johnson have afforded him plenty of game time during the season. The big problem is that Evans, for the most part, is utterly anonymous. Whereas previous skippers like Kevin Ball were inspirational, take-no-nonsense warhorses, and more recent captains like Dean Whitehead combined physicality and guile with good qualities on the ball, Evans simply doesn’t bring enough to the table. please log in to view this image Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images When was the last time, during a tense passage of play or when the momentum was swinging away from us, that you thought to yourself ‘Thank God that Corry’s playing, and he’ll do what needs to be done to make sure that we get through this game’? At the moment, it feels as though we are looking to at least six or seven different players for inspiration before Evans comes into the equation, and that is never an ideal place to be. Our lack of a midfield ‘enforcer’ a long-running issue in itself, seems to have been addressed significantly with the arrival of Jay Matete (granted, he isn’t the finished article yet) and with Dan Neil on the comeback trail, the fact that Alex Neil continues to persist with Evans is something of a mystery. please log in to view this image Photo by Mark Fletcher/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images Perhaps, if you were to look at the other side of the argument, Evans has simply been inhibited by the responsibility of leadership and his game has suffered as a result. Maybe he is something of a reluctant captain, a man trying his utmost and with the club’s best interests at heart, but is simply hitting a ceiling and is unable to do any more. He wouldn’t be the first Sunderland player of recent times to be shoehorned into a role that he wasn’t naturally suited to, and I do wonder whether someone like Bailey Wright or even Luke O’Nien would be more suited to the position. Wright’s no-nonsense approach and O’Nien’s ability to lead by example have both been evident this season, and that is no surprise. Regardless of the outcome of this season, our first-choice midfield pairing for next season should comprise Neil and Matete, and the captain’s armband should be designated to one player. Forget leadership groups and the delegating of responsibility to a core of senior players. Establish who our one totemic figure is, ensure that he is suited to a leadership role, and let’s get back to a traditional structure – one that has rarely let us down in the past.
Agree but to be fair, he has been really disappointing. I'm biased mind as I never like these players who are supposed to 'keep the game ticking over and do all the unseen work'! I also agree that it is poor timing from a group supposedly made up of supporters.
not sure about the 'captains role' for him to be honest, but our defence IS improving...now that could be purely down to the work AN has done or maybe the cover that evans is providing but probably a combination of both. i have watched evans as closely as the streams allow, sometimes i wonder why our captain is just pointing to where a team mate should pass rather than making space for himself to take a pass then in the next breath thinking 'great tackle/interception' and others who have actually been able to watch him during games feel he contributes little to the team. i am not a fan of slagging our players off but it does seem there is an element that feel the need to pick one player and lay all the blame on him, recent example would be flanagan, every time we lost it was purely because he was not good enough then he was sold and we shipped even more goals for a while so i am convinced certain elements within the fan base will only see what they want to see and they tend to be the 'loudest' ones waiting for that one mistake to 'prove them right'.
I'm always happy to be proved wrong with players, Patterson being the latest as I thought he was too quiet. But some people decide someone is shyte after half a game, declare their opinion and will never go back on it. I think we can do better than Evans but the likes of Embleton seem to vanish in that role. Evans has gritted his teeth, despite some fierce criticism, and was MOTM at Lincoln imo. Neil did very little in that games, missed a very good chance and was taken off. I haven't seen the slightest criticism yet Evans and Gooch are declared unfit to wear the shirt. None of our players are top class and play well in every game ... ... if they were they wouldn't be here.
Personally id love to see Evans dropped and see us start playing with a midfield 3 or Neil, Matete and Onien. I think thats our best option going forward
true, i have seen both embleton and neil come into the side and play in a position they looked ready made for, two or three games later you forget they are on the pitch till they make a great pass or come close with a shot then they go quiet again...i think kilbane was the first one to get massive stick but the lad never cried off with fake injuries then got moved to RB and came good again. in all my years i can honestly only think of one player who deserved every bit of stick he got (rodwell) and while many others have not been fantastic i believe each and every one has tried and the simple truth is we now have 3rd division players (one or two exceptions) either learning their trade or probably at the biggest club of their career yet some still expect champions league performances every week.
Ill throw in Alan Stubbs aswell, another former Toffee that only signed for the money and clearly didnt want to be here. To be fair, we've had that much shyte over the years they must be a few more?
aye, there are most likely a few i just plain 'wanted' to forget about...we do seem to have a habit of buying well rated players that turn to mush once they sign.
to be fair, most did actually make some attempt to play football once on the pitch, the reason i chose rodwell was even when he did get picked he could hide in plain sight, obviously not even wanting the ball...even gareth hall tried!!!
Yes true mate, Stubbs definitely didnt look interested though with what i remember of his short time here.
It's such a shame that Pritchard was injured just after Neil had proclaimed him the key to our season. He has just as much talent as Neil and Embleton but ten times the determination.
problem with neil is his passing range can be excellent but he is far more involved when further forward which kind of negates his passing range, embleton shows his best when he has been out of the team whether through injury or dropped his best game is always his first one back...both have the ability to play at a higher level and with better players around them could well stand out (no disrespect meant to the rest of the squad mind), pritchard took a wee while to find his feet but he shows the very meaning of the phrase 'getting stuck in', he is all over the pitch and when he gets the ball he WANTS something to happen.
