Despite not adding another central midfielder in the final hours of the transfer window, Kristjaan Speakman says he thinks Sunderland have adequate depth in the position for the months to come.
While Nazariy Rusyn and Mason Burstow were eventually acquired by the team, there was obviously a focus on acquiring forwards on deadline day. However, head coach Tony Mowbray had also expressed a wish to see more depth and experience emerge in the midfield.
Both Dan Neil and Pierre Ekwah have had strong starts to their respective seasons, but Mowbray cautioned that should either sustain an injury, the club will be left vulnerable.
On the day before the transfer deadline, the Black Cats were connected with a move for Fenerbahce midfielder Miguel Crespo, but no agreement was reached.
Although he has so far played in a more attacking capacity for Sunderland this season, sports director says summer acquisition Jobe Bellingham from Birmingham City is a possibility to assume one of the deeper roles.
Adil Aouchiche, who joined FC Lorient on the final day and is mostly an attacker, can also play as an eight, he added.
Sunderland did give some ideas some thought, but by deadline day, they had switched their focus to deals for other positions. Speakman claims to be confident in the club’s depth and was equally concerned with maintaining a clear path for younger players to regular opportunities.
Dan, Pierre, and Jobe are the three we believe we have, according to Speakman.
“We have three, plus Jay Matete and Corry Evans, who are expected to return from injuries. Adil can play as a ten/eleven as well as an eight, so we looked at a few additional possibilities. So, we believe we have ample wiggle room there.
“We want a streamlined team because we want to attempt to make sure that guys have an opportunity to play. Naturally, we want to make sure that we have enough depth, but not so much that players can’t see a way onto the field, since that’s also bad for the culture of the squad.
When you have a squad structure, it is inevitable that you may appear to be a little light in some areas, but we feel we have coverage, and we are at ease with the flexibility we have.
“Team compositions and positions in the game are changing… Last Saturday, we lined up as a 4-3-3, but when we lost possession, we switched to a 3-4-3. We also played Southampton man against man, which was tremendously gutsy and for which the coaching staff deserves praise. Most teams would like to take things easy, but Sunderland does not.
We must have adaptable players inside it, and we are really at ease with it.
Speakman consequently revealed that the team was not considering any prospective free-agent additions after the
We always evaluate the market, but we don’t consider if we can secure a particular position when doing so. Absolutely not, Speakman declared.
We are “really, really comfortable” with where we are now as a result of the deals we completed at the window’s closing.
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