Phil Smith's Sunderland AFC Q&A: Early January hopes, potential Sheffield Wednesday changes and Rotherham reflections

It has been a remarkable week of mixed emotions on Wearside, and Phil Smith has been answering questions from readers on all the big issues at the Stadium of Light.

You can read it all below...

How bad was Saturday and what is your biggest concern?

The biggest concern, as Lee Johnson noted, would be that it has happened before this season at Portsmouth and some of the issues were similar to those that we’d seen a week earlier against Charlton, albeit I felt Sunderland deserved a point from that one.

Teams that don’t play out from the back and bombard the box clearly make life difficult for Sunderland.

I don’t think there’s any point trying to match that philosophy when you come up against it, but clearly they need to find a way to deal with it better.

Just a touch more experience in January, may well be the answer.

The long-term philosophy is right and the club is heading in the right direction, just maybe needing the occasional adjustment along the way.

Do Sunderland need to change their approach against the big teams in League One?

I don’t think there’s a major need for change, particularly when you consider that they’ve beaten Wycombe Wanderers and Wigan Athletic at the Stadium of Light.

I certainly don’t think they need to change the philosophy. That excellent goal at Rotherham showed how effective playing out can be if you do it well against sides who commit players up the pitch to try and lock you in your own third.

The issue was that they did it so poorly for much of the game.

But can there be a few tweaks within what they normally do for tough games on the road? I think so.

If fit, you want Corry Evans in there.

He picks up good positions to help the centre backs and his distribution is generally very reliable. That was definitely missed in the first hour at the New York Stadium.

He could either come in for one of the two central midfielders, or you could move to a more orthodox 4-3-3 which I definitely would not be averse to.

That leaves the option of moving Embleton or Pritchard out wide, which should leave you with a decent balance.

I don’t think the way Sunderland play needs a major overhaul in these games, but maybe you need a better balance of experience across the back four, and without a doubt, better protection for the full backs.

Something needs to change, no doubt, and it’s a big challenge for Johnson.

What changes would you make for Sheff Wed?

Well Johnson will have to make one change, with Aiden McGeady suspended.

I’d probably make Aiden O’Brien my pick to play off the left. He’s a threat cutting inside and he’ll give the full back some welcome protection, to boot.

I’d also be tempted to reinforce the midfield, whether that be resting Luke O’Nien or introducing Corry Evans behind him as extra protection. That decision would then lead to whether you move Embleton (or Pritchard) out wide, or whether you go with a more natural winger in Gooch/Dajaku.

I’d also be considering handing Frederik Alves a first league start. I think he’s ready.

Will Sunderland already be planning for the January window and what do you think they need?

100%.

Johnson told The Echo a week or so ago that planning was underway, and that there were meetings scheduled to step it up in the very near future.

He also pointed out in the aftermath of Saturday that something needed to change in games like that and January was one potential avenue.

The fact is that there are still a lot of games between now and January, and the injury situation then will definitely inform the business that needs to be done.

For example, if Nathan Broadhead is fully fit and showing the form he did before his hamstring injury, I’m happy with him and ROss Stewart as options.

If not, you need to strengthen.

Right now, I’d be looking at a right back, to ease the burden on the two currently fit senior full backs, and to ease the burden on Niall Huggins when he returns.

I’d definitely be looking at another central midfielder, so Johnson can freshen it up more.

I’d make a strong case for another proper holding midfielder, for when Evans may not be available.

And depending on how the situation develops, I’d be giving strong consideration to a recall for Jack Diamond, though Leon Dajaku is still settling in and is clearly very talented.

Honestly, though, Sunderland will be looking at just about every position (at this stage) in case injury forces their hand.

I do think the cup runs mean they need to run a squad one or two players bigger than they’d have initially planned.

When will we get confirmation of whether Lincoln (H) will go ahead?

International squads are usually confirmed at the end of the week so I would imagine it will be around them.

It’s certainly a frustrating process for fans and I empathise entirely. Given the fact we rarely have more than four or five League One games played in international breaks anyway, I think it’s high time they were introduced in the third tier.

I’d be surprised if Sunderland play that game, just because if they have the same number of call ups as they did last time out it would leave Frederik Alves as Johnson’s only available senior defender, given injuries elsewhere.

Add Corry Evans to the mix and the squad is seriously depleted, and even amid understandable concern over fixture pile ups I just don’t see how you could take that risk.

We’ll have to wait and see, though, as frustrating as it is.

Do you think Benji Kimpioka will get a first team chance now he’s back?

The challenging fixture schedule means he has every chance along the way, particularly when it comes to the Papa John’s Trophy and if Sunderland make progress in the early rounds of the FA Cup.

Lee Johnson has been clear, though, that he has a lot to do.

You have to have some sympathy in terms of his loan at Southend United, which was a club in total disarray during his short stay there.

But the reality is that over recent times I suspect that Will Harris and Ellis Taylor have probably moved ahead of the youngsters in the pecking order.

Johnson’s comments certainly suggest that he’ll need to put a real run of form together in the U23 setup.

Is he good enough? Absolutely. I’ve seen U23 games where has been dominant, a total menace for the opposition defence and the best player on the pitch.

Whether he’s done that often enough is a bigger question.

It’s a big few months for the 21-year-old, because it does feel like his career on Wearside at least is drifting.

He’s a tremendous personality and there are many behind the scenes who would love him to break through.

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