Ex-Sunderland coach discusses Premier League interest in Anthony Patterson - David Preece exclusive

Former Sunderland goalkeeping coach David Preece says he’s been contacted by multiple Premier League clubs doing background checks on Anthony Patterson.

The Black Cats shot stopper has seen his stock rise significantly over the last year after starting every Championship fixture during the 2022/23 season.

Leicester City, who were relegated from the top flight, and Wolves have been credited with interest in Patterson this year, while the player has three years left on his contract at the Stadium of Light.

Preece worked with Patterson during Sunderland’s League One promotion campaign last year and believes the 23-year-old has all the attributes to play at the top level.

“I’ve had conversations with Premier League clubs who have been sort of doing background checks and getting my thoughts on it,” Preece told the Echo. “It’s not just my opinion that he can play in the Premier League, of course he can.

“He can go as high as he wants to now because the one thing he is, he’s a stable goalkeeper. His mentality is very stable, he doesn’t get too high, he doesn’t get too low.

“He’s proved this season that he’s not just capable at this level, he excels at this level. Off the top of my head I think he’s probably the standout keeper in that division this season.

“Certainly when you talk about his experience and where he’s come from, it’s a massive leap from where everyone saw him a year or 18 months ago.”

First impressions

Patterson’s progress over the last year and a half makes it easy to forget just how far he has come.

After becoming Sunderland’s third-choice goalkeeper behind Lee Burge and Thorben Hoffmann at the start of the 2021/22 season, the youngster was loaned out to Notts County in the National League.

The situation changed at the turn of the year, though, when Burge and Hoffmann both tested positive for Covid-19. Patterson was recalled, took his chance and was the side’s first-choice keeper for the rest of the campaign - which finished at Wembley with a 2-0 win over Wycombe in the play-off final.

Preece joined Sunderland’s coaching staff during a pre-season training camp in Edinburgh in 2021, when Lee Johnson was in charge of the team, and says youth team coach Mark Prudhoe deserves huge credit for Patterson’s development.

“When I first came to the club I spoke to a few people, especially Mark Prudhoe, the coaching staff like Michael Proctor (former under-23s assistant and now first-team coach) and coaches who’d worked with Anthony before just to get their thoughts on him.

“Mark Prudhoe had a lot of faith in him, he knew exactly what he was capable of and is someone whose opinion I trust highly.

“There were others around the club who said ‘yeah, brilliant shot stopper’ but were quick to point out some of the maybe deficiencies he had in his game.

“I worked with him for a week in Scotland and couldn’t see anything that couldn’t be fixed like that, minor details that made a big difference.

“I could see what a brilliant goalkeeper he was, and it was actually a close-run thing whether it would be him or Lee Burge who was going to start the first game of the season. Lee Johnson went with Lee Burge because of his experience.”

The right loan move

Still, Patterson’s loan move to Notts County would stand the keeper in good stead as he returned to Sunderland in the thick of a League One promotion battle.

“Luckily for me I had a close relationship with Notts County manager Ian Burchnall,” recalled Preece.

“Everything that Anthony needed to be comfortable in the first team at Sunderland, to be comfortable with the ball, good passing range, to be put under pressure where he’s got the ball at his feet, I knew that Ian would do that because that’s the way Ian’s teams play football, the way that Notts County have played.

“I knew that playing in the National League as well he was going to get tested physically, long crosses, long throws into the box, he was going to get all that. It was just a perfect scenario for him to get the right experience.”

Patterson’s distribution and ability to collect crosses have both visibly improved since his return to Sunderland, when the keeper established himself as the club’s No 1 keeper under Alex Neil - who replaced Johnson in February 2022.

When asked about improving the physical side of Patterson’s game, Preece replied: “It’s something that’s crucial. Especially in League One we knew that’s what he was going to face, long diagonals to the far post, set-pieces that were going to be right on top of him.

“Those were the two things that I focused on because that’s what was demanded in the games.

“The way that Lee wanted to play, he wanted his goalkeeper to play out from the back and be capable of doing that to a high level, and be able to cope with the physical demands of crosses and set-plays. That was something we worked on a lot.

“The way that I work it’s always, I have to rely on myself to do what the manager wants in his side.

“With Alex his focus wasn’t on playing out from the back, so then you’re not working on it as much, but when you are trying to do that it’s something you have to really work at.”

A dream to work with

Behind the scenes Patterson isn’t seen as the most vocal member of Sunderland’s squad, yet Preece believes the keeper’s level-headed approach is a strength.

“He’s certainly grown in that respect. I think you have to do that when you’re playing at the Stadium of Light in front of big crowds, you have to grow in your personality.

“He can be a man of few words but I think it’s just the fact he was a bit of a late developer maturing. As a goalkeeper I don’t think there’s ever been a problem with him.

“He’s very relaxed, even though he’s a hard worker, sometimes you just have to prod him a little bit because he’s so relaxed and just raise the level of his intensity.

“For someone to work with, he’s a willing learner, takes everything in and is just a real dream to work with from a coach’s perspective.”

Stepping up

Following Sunderland’s win at Wembley and promotion from League One, the club had to react fast as they prepared to step up to the Championship.

There were suggestions about bringing in a more experienced goalkeeper to challenge Patterson, yet Preece believed the keeper was ready for the second tier.

“It was the day after or two days after, they were in the office having a conversation because literally we had to move quickly.

“It was basically a question of, can he do it in the Championship? Is he a Championship goalkeeper?

“For me it was a case of 100%, certainly he is, and his ceiling was even higher than what he showed.

“The biggest compliment I can pay to Anthony is that above his talent, is the fact that every challenge that is brought his way, and he was put into situations that were high pressured, he handled them no problem.”

The next challenge for Patterson could be making the step up to the Premier League, whether that is with Sunderland or elsewhere.