Tony Mowbray’s biggest Sunderland selection dilemma ahead of Preston fixture after Crewe and Ipswich defeats

After making 10 changes for Tuesday’s Carabao Cup tie against Crewe, Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray is set to recall several first-team players when his side travel to Preston this weekend.

Like last week’s pre-season defeat against Hartlepool, the cup exit against a League Two side didn’t do much for those trying to force their way into the Black Cats’ first-choice starting XI - consisting of the 11 players who also started the friendly against Real Mallorca last month.

Yet while Hemir is set to once again lead the line, with Patrick Roberts and Jack Clarke the clear first-choice options out wide, there is more competition in the No 10 position.

Jobe Bellingham occupied the advanced role against Ipswich and, aside from squandering a golden chance in the first half, performed well on his competitive Sunderland debut.

The 17-year-old’s energy to press opponents and technical ability to link up play was impressive as the Black Cats dominated large parts of the first half, before he was withdrawn in the 59th minute.

Bellingham was replaced by the more experienced Alex Pritchard, who helped Sunderland regain a foothold in the match, after going two goals down and Trai Hume’s red card, with his intelligent use of the ball and clever movement.

Despite only being on the pitch from the 59th minute against Ipswich, Pritchard made three key passes (according to Whoscored.com), the joint most along with Patrick Roberts.

The 30-year-old was also one of few players to stand out in the Carabao Cup tie against Crewe, making seven key passes during the match and registering four efforts on target - even if most of them were straight at goalkeeper Harvey Davies.

Pritchard linked up well with Bradley Dack in the second half, as the pair rotated in the central forward positions, while the former showed signs of forming an effective partnership with centre-forward Hemir at times in pre-season.

Dack provides another strong option for the No 10 spot, with the former Blackburn man getting back up to speed after missing most of pre-season.

While Sunderland’s squad is clearly low on numbers in some areas, Mowbray does have multiple options when it comes to the aforementioned role.