REGIS Le Bris has no intention of moving Wilson Isidor to the left flank, even though he admits that area is currently the "weakest" part of his squad.
Having sold Jack Clarke in the summer, Sunderland have also seen their replacement for the Ipswich Town winger, Romaine Mundle, suffer an injury that is likely to keep him on the sidelines until the start of next year.
Tommy Watson has started the last two matches on the left of Sunderland’s three-pronged attack, and is likely to retain his place for tomorrow night’s game at Sheffield United, but the 18-year-old is hugely inexperienced and is still really finding his feet in the senior set-up.
Either Eliezer Mayenda or Aaron Connolly could be shuffled across to the left-hand side, but Le Bris is much more reluctant to move Isidor to a wide position, even though the Frenchman was originally signed from Zenit St Petersburg with a view to playing off the left.
Isidor has impressed as a central striker in the last couple of months, and given that he is Sunderland’s leading scorer with five goals from 11 league starts, Le Bris does not want to move the loanee out of his current central position.
“I think at the minute, we want to keep the consistency with Wilson,” said the Sunderland boss. “It is possible to play with Wilson in a different position, but when we have a striker with confidence, I don’t really want to do that.
“I think his style of play fits well with the league at the minute, so we don’t have to change (his position). But for others, it depends on their own dynamics and that of the opponent.
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“It is possible to change to give them minutes and try things. We can see what they can do in a specific circumstance against a specific opponent, and that will allow us to gain experiences for the players and for the staff as well. Then, it is a question of management during the games.”
Mayenda finished Tuesday’s draw with West Brom on the left-hand side after leaving the substitutes’ bench, and Le Bris admits he is currently trialling a number of different options as he looks to plug the gap that was created when Mundle suffered a serious hamstring injury in the draw with Coventry that preceded the international break.
“Are we looking at options on the left? Yes, is the short answer,” said Le Bris. “Yes, obviously, because at the minute, this is probably one of the weakest positions according to the players available.
“(Yesterday) morning, I had a conversation with the defenders and said, ‘In this part of the pitch, we are very confident because we can use many players in different positions and it is clear we can play with different players and they are complementary’. We have used different options, and it has been good. In the defensive line, it is okay. But I agree, when it comes to the left wing, the position is much more open.”
Watson’s promotion from the Under-21 ranks has alleviated the problem slightly, with Le Bris having been impressed with the way in which the teenager has coped with the step up to the senior squad.
If he was to start at Bramall Lane tomorrow, Watson would be making his third start in six days, a marked change from the start of the season, when he was not even making the matchday squad, but something the Easington-born forward’s manager is confident he can handle.
“It’s a big challenge for someone like Tommy to play three games in a week, but you can be surprised by how a young player rises to a challenge like that,” said Le Bris. “Until you give this kind of opportunity, you don’t know what will happen.
“Tommy is powerful, he’s very strong and he can repeat high-intensity efforts in a way that I don’t think many players in the squad can. He is one of the youngest players, but maybe it is best to just try, and we will see.”
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