Stephen Elliott: Sunderland transfer team deserve praise but another striker a must

On Saturday, Sunderland caught a glimpse of new signing Pierre Ekwah when he came on for the last 15 minutes.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

It’s very early days and he may have looked a little bit nervous but the one thing that stood out for me about Ekwah was the sheer physical presence he possesses. He will get better.

With Corry Evans missing for the rest of the season I’m sure we will see a lot more of the French midfielder in Sunderland’s engine room.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Like I have mentioned previously, the one thing lacking in the team is that bit of physicality, particularly in central midfield. In certain games, and obviously this has not mattered hugely given how well they have played, Sunderland have looked slightly lighter and not as strong as some of their counterparts.

Sunderland head coach Tony Mowbray.Sunderland head coach Tony Mowbray.
Sunderland head coach Tony Mowbray.

Evans, albeit not huge himself, has probably been the most aggressive in the midfield area so the onus may be on Ekwah to provide this side of the game to the team.

Again, like Joe Gelhardt, he has arrived with good potential and I’m looking forward to seeing how he will compliment Dan Neil and others. The recruitment team haven’t got much wrong recently and I don’t suspect they will have with Ekwah either.

We are into the dying hours of the transfer window now and I would be surprised if we don’t see a bit more activity at the Academy of Light, especially with Ross Stewart picking up another serious injury.

You get the feeling another forward is a must. However, we shall wait and see, while trusting what has been a successful recruitment plan so far.