Phil Smith: Seven things we learned as Sunderland return to action against Gateshead and South Shields

Sunderland made their return to action on Saturday as the 2025/26 campaign began with two friendlies against Gateshead and South Shields.

The Black Cats drew the opening fixture of the day against Gateshead at Hebburn Town 2-2, before a more established side ran out 4-0 winners over South Shields. Phil Smith was there reporting on both games for The Echo and here wraps up all the key talking points...

Régis Le Bris has made an early call on a number of fringe players

Sunderland's side to face Hebburn Town to face Gateshead was mainly a development one, but a number of senior players who have been on the fringes of the squad last season or out on loan were present. Later in the day, Le Bris would confirm that all those involved in the first game have been made aware that they can leave the club this summer. Those involved were Joe Anderson, Nazariy Rusyn, Ian Poveda, Jay Matete, Luis Hemir and Abdoullah Ba. Timothee Pembele was not involved in the game but is understood to be in the same category.

To their credit, those who played made solid contributions in the game and the match fitness will help them in their bid to find new clubs. Anderson scored a very good goal and was the best player on the pitch in the first half of the game, in which Poveda and Rusyn also were lively. Hemir missed a couple of decent chances in the second half but looked fit and quicker than this time last year. It's not an ideal situation for anyone involved but the game time could be an important step in finding the right moves.

Trey Ogunusyi scores goals

Ogunsuyi picked up where left off last season, starting Sunderland's U21 campaign with a goal. There was more than a slice of fortune in the way a long-range shot fell to his feet in the box, but that is what the youngster does. He picks up good positions in the box, is alert and composed. He's very much one to watch over the coming years.

It was also good to see Sunderland's new signing from Coleraine, Matthew Burns, in action in the second half. His introduction came in unfortunate circumstances after the very lively Felix Scott picked up an injury, but Burns made a solid start and showed he is a strong tackler who can pick a pass.

Chris Rigg misses out but his return is imminent

Sunderland had confirmed on the eve of the game that Luke O'Nien, Aji Alese, Dennis Cirkin and Leo Hjelde would miss the opening three games of the Premier League season due to injury. There was no mention of Chris Rigg, who had missed the U19s European Championships with an ankle issue. Rigg was not involved at South Shields but was at the tame, meeting fans beforehand and posing for pictures. Le Bris confirmed after the game that the midfielder is now recovered from his injury, and will start training fully with his team mates in Portugal this week. With Sunderland moving early to strengthen their midfield ranks in the summer transfer window, Rigg will be keen to get involved and show just how big a part he can play this season.

Sunderland need to make defensive reinforcements a priority.

Those aforementioned injuries highlighted the need for Sunderland to strengthen their defensive ranks in the weeks ahead. Reinildo was given some extra time off in the aftermath of his involvement in the Club World Cup with Atletico Madrid, and his arrival in the coming weeks will add a welcome option at left back. Youngster Jenson Jones did a solid job in the first half at South Shields and Harrison Jones was excellent in the second operating out of position, but the need for more depth is obvious.

Jenson Seelt made a welcome return to action in the first half, and Sunderland will be closely monitoring his progress over the next couple of weeks to determine whether he is ready to play a part in the Premier League. So too Nectar Triantis who played the second half at Shields, but it's worth remembering that the success of his loan at Hibs last season was in part due to his move into a holding midfield role. Sunderland's squad is really taking shape after a solid start to the window but at one least one central defender with top-level experience is a must ahead of the new campaign.

Habib Diarra makes a positive first impression

Le Bris cautioned afterwards that Diarra would need time to settle and build relationships with his new team mates, but this was a promising debut albeit against lower-league opposition. Diarra operated primarily in a holding midfield role but his impressive athleticism was on show throughout the half, often leading Sunderland's press and getting up the pitch to pressure the opposition defence. Diarra covered a significant amount of ground and picked an excellent pass from Romaine Mundle's goal, highlighting his quality in possession.

And so does Ahmed Abdullahi

This was a senior debut of sorts for Abdullahi, who was unable to feature last season after struggling to recover from groin surgery shortly after his arrival at the club. Sunderland were confident by the end of last season that those issues were behind the former Gent striker and it is clear that he has been able to hit the ground running this time around. Whether he will be able to force his way into the thinking in terms of the upcoming Premier League season remains to be seen but it was clear from this game that Sunderland have recruited a talented play. Abdullahi moves well, has the strength to hold the ball up and demonstrated a powerful shot that could have yielded more than the one goal he did score.

Niall Huggins is back

Arguably the biggest positive of the day from a Sunderland perspective was to see Niall Huggins back in action after another long injury lay-off. Most encouraging of all was that the full back looked as sharp as he did back in the first half of the 2023/24 campaign, with only a few understandable errors towards the end of the half. Like Abdullahi it remains to be seen whether Huggins can force his way into the fold this season but that's a discussion for another day. For now it was just a real tonic to see the full back enjoying his football again.

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