How much do Sunderland benefit from having a number nine in their side?

Injuries to Ross Stewart and Ellis Simms last season meant Sunderland were forced to push round pegs into square holes time and time again, with the likes of Alex Pritchard and Joe Gelhardt often asked to play unfamiliar roles. It’s been a similar trend this campaign with Bradley Dack and Jobe Bellingham occasionally playing the ‘striker’ role.

Many fans felt a fit Stewart could have fired Tony Mowbray’s men into the Premier League last term, while the Scot’s sale to Southampton appears to have left the Wearsiders in familiarly frustrating territory, without a natural focal point for the team’s attacking brand of football.

Sunderland tried to solve the issue in the summer by bringing in a number of forwards. But none have made the scoresheet this season despite the side netting 15 goals in eight games. Mowbray’s men have made a mixed start to the season — picking up big results such as the 5-0 win at home to relegated Southampton but also dropping points due to their failure to convert clear chances.

So how much do Sunderland benefit from bringing a number nine into the picture? And could the club rue the decision to sanction Stewart’s move despite the striker’s patchy fitness record? Since the start of the 22/23 season, Sunderland have fielded a number nine in 23 of their 54 league games. In those games 38 goals were scored at an average of 1.68 goals per game — with 17 (45%) coming directly from one of the number nines on the pitch.

Data taken from matches featuring a number nine reveals Sunderland averaged 1.6 points per game. This would average out at 74 points across a full season — a tally high enough to have secured a play-off place in three of the last five Championship campaigns.

By comparison, Sunderland managed just 29 goals in the 23 games when a number nine was not on the pitch — an average of 1.26 goals per game. Across these fixtures, Sunderland picked up 30 points or the equivalent of 1.3 points per game. Throughout a full season, that record would guarantee 60 points… a total that would have failed to secure a top half finish in any of the last five Championship seasons.