Sunderland boss explains why Aaron Connolly was 'disappointed' after midweek U21s brace
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Sunderland U21s coach Graeme Murty has delivered a glowing verdict on new striker Aaron Connolly following his brace against Huddersfield Town on Tuesday.
The Irishman signed for the Black Cats as a free agent last month, but is still yet to make his first team debut on Wearside. He has, however, registered two outings for Murty’s development side, scoring three goals in a little over 100 minutes of action.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdConnolly’s pair of strikes against the Terriers helped Sunderland to a 3-2 victory in Yorkshire, and after the final whistle Murty was quick to hail the centre forward for both his quality and his application. He said: “He’s been really good with the group and to work with. He’s really good at making sure he’s vocal and communicates with the young players.
The Echo has launched a new WhatsApp SAFC Channel to bring the latest news, analysis and team & injury updates direct to your phone. Simply click this link to join our SAFC WhatsApp channel.
“He leads by example, gives them advice but he’s also not shy about getting after people if they’re below the standard, and that’s good. He’s a very, very good finisher and we see that in training as well. He was disappointed to come off, he was supposed to come off at 60 and ended up coming off at 70 - he wanted to stay on. It’s brilliant for us and a great example for the young players.”
Connolly was named in Regis Le Bris’ first team squad for the 2-2 draw with Leeds United just prior to the international break, but was an unused substitute in that game. There is an expectation that he could make his bow against former club Hull City on Sunday afternoon.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdSpeaking after Sunderland’s clash with Leeds, Le Bris said: “With Aaron, we didn’t want to rush the process. He was on the bench, and we thought that maybe by being there, he could be useful for the team. But it was too high risk [to bring him on] because he probably needs to play for 45 minutes with the U21s. Then after that, maybe 60 minutes or 65 in the next game.”
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.