Three losses. One goal. As Sunderland’s goals have dried up after a free-flowing start to the season, there is one decision that is casting a long shadow over the club. The sale of Ross Stewart.
When a team is playing and goals are coming from everywhere, you can hide the fact that you don’t have a goalscoring striker but when a side is struggling, as we are now, you need that ‘johnny on the spot’ who can make a difference and win games with a scrappy goal.
While Stewart was clearly unhappy with the contract on offer and his injury record was poor, a fit Loch Ness Drogba could have fired us to the Premier League. For that reason alone, the club should have move hell and high water to make him an offer he could not have refused. The club hierarchy showed commendable resilience in resisting tempting bids for Jack Clarke and Patrick Roberts but a similar determination should have been shown in keeping our star striker. Especially given the knock-on back on Clarke seems to have merely delayed the inevitable with the club reported to have accepted a £15m bid in January.
As Stewart’s absence has shown, good strikers are as rare as hen’s teeth. With none of Burstow, Hemir and Rusyn convincing Mowbray at the current time, we are in no better position to last season when we played for the majority without a striker and relied on the excellence of Amad to make an unlikely play-off push.
While the recruitment team have brought in quality in other areas of their pitch, they have failed badly to sign a goalscoring striker. It’s been two seasons now and we are still seeking a replacement for Stewart, with the decision not to resign Nathan Broadhead, who is adding salt to the wounds by threatening to fire Ipswich to the Prem, a notable major blunder.
With a play-off place again looking the best scenario for an inconsistent, albeit entertaining side, Mowbray needs to fill the striker vacuum fast. With the club having overachieved with a play-off place last season the pressure is on. Anything other than promotion this season will be seen as lack of progress. Mowbray’s fate could be sealed by that stark fact.
