How much did Sunderland miss Alex Pritchard at Plymouth? Plus what do the stats say about Alex Neil's attacking options

Just 40.74 per cent of the Black Cats’ attempted passes into Plymouth’s territory were successful at Home Park, so it was little surprise that Alex Neil’s side registered just two efforts on target over the 90 minutes.

As the Sunderland boss pointed out after the match, this hasn’t particularly been a glaring issue in recent weeks. In the Black Cats’ ten-match unbeaten run, their passing accuracy into the final third has consistently been above 60 per cent – with their lowest total in that sequence coming in February’s 1-1 home draw with Burton (60.71 per cent).

There was one notable absentee in the fixture at Plymouth, though, with Alex Pritchard sidelined for the third consecutive match with a minor calf issue.

Pritchard is Sunderland’s top creator with eight League One assists this campaign, while he is eighth in League One when it comes to expected assists (according to football database Wyscout) – despite a challenging start to the campaign following his struggles with Covid-19.

So just how much of a miss has the playmaker been as the Black Cats reach a crucial stage of the season?

Neil, who worked with Pritchard at Norwich, has repeatedly spoken about the 28-year-old’s qualities, yet, in terms of results, Sunderland have coped with Pritchard’s absence.

In Neil’s 12 games in charge the playmaker has started six of them, with the side winning twice, drawing three times and losing once in those fixtures.

Of the six matches Pritchard hasn’t been available under Neil, Sunderland have won four and drawn twice, with players such as Elliot Embleton and Patrick Roberts coming into the side.

So while the Black Cats’ squad is light in some areas, Neil does have options in the attacking midfield positions.

There is also little to choose between the aforementioned players when comparing their passing stats this campaign.

On average in League One, Pritchard has played 3.84 passes into the final third per 90 minutes (with a 59.8 per cent accuracy), which is slight lower than Embleton at 4.14 passes (with 63.8 per cent accuracy), while Roberts has averaged 3.31 passes (with an 88.9 per cent accuracy).

Still, while Pritchard has earned praise for his ability in possession, his willingness to defend and press from the front, a key component in the way Neil wants his side to play, has also stood out.

In the league Pritchard has averaged 4.26 recovery runs per 90 minutes this term, which is higher than both Embleton (3.83) and Roberts (2.39).

Clearly then Pritchard’s return would give Sunderland a big boost heading into their final league fixtures, and hopefully the play-offs, yet there are other capable options available for Neil.

It should also be noted that Plymouth have conceded just 14 goals at home this season, the lowest figure in League One, which goes someway to explaining Sunderland’s struggles.

Still, Neil will know the Black Cats’ attacking play and service to their strikers, which comes from the whole team and not just their creative midfielders, will have to improve as they aim to secure a top-six place.