The pros and cons of Sunderland's potential Tommy Watson replacements amid confirmed injury blow

There’s bad luck, and then there’s whatever brand of injury-based hoodoo it is that swirls malevolently around the treatment table at the Stadium of Light. On Tuesday evening, it was teenage winger Tommy Watson who became the latest Sunderland player to fall victim to the Black Cats’ recurrent curse, forced off after 26 minutes following a robust challenge from Bristol City defender Luke McNally during a fairly drab 1-1 draw.

Watson’s absence is made all the crueller by the fact that it rears its head so soon after his coming of age, match-winning turn against Stoke City last weekend, as well as the fact that he himself was deputising for the already-crocked Romaine Mundle.

And now, with Regis Le Bris confirming in a press conference on Thursday that Watson will be out of action for around two months, Sunderland will likely require a relatively unorthodox solution out on the left flank when they travel to face Swansea City on Saturday afternoon. With that in mind, we’ve taken a look at some of the pros and cons of the Black Cats’ various options below...

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Eliezer Mayenda

Arguably one of the most likely outcomes of Watson’s injury is that Mayenda will be shunted from one wing to the other, as he was in-game against Bristol City. The teenager put in a surprisingly divisive performance in midweek, with some impressed by his directness and willingness to ask questions of his full-back, and others unconvinced by his suitability to operate in a wide berth.

Certainly, he looked brighter when posted out on the right, and it is undeniable that Sunderland’s set-up is much more suited to so-called “inverted” wingers with the capability to cut inside onto their stronger foot. There’s also no getting away from the fact that Mayenda is a very different attacking proposition to the likes of Watson or Mundle, and the Black Cats would have to adjust accordingly.

But given the personnel issues that Le Bris is currently facing, it might well be the case that his hand is forced into persisting with Mayenda on the left, and if nothing else, you can guarantee that the Spaniard will put in an admirable shift in South Wales, if called upon.

Wilson Isidor

Another entirely plausible option available to Le Bris would be to move Isidor out to the left and start either Mayenda or Aaron Connolly at the point of attack. The Frenchman has played there for Sunderland before, and much was made of his versatility when he first arrived on Wearside, but the drawback would surely be that whenever he has been taken out of that central role in recent weeks, the Black Cats have generally looked more toothless as a result.

That being said, Isidor himself has struggled to capitalise on a number of gilded goal-scoring opportunities of late, and a slight change in brief may ultimately prove to be a beneficial reset for both him and the rest of Sunderland’s stuttering front line.

Adil Aouchiche

The notion that Aouchiche could be under consideration for a start would have felt almost unthinkable to many on Wearside just a few short weeks ago, and yet, after his eye-catching cameo against Bristol City, a nod for the Frenchman is not out of the question by any means. It was Aouchiche who laid on the assist for Patrick Roberts’ stoppage time equaliser, and his showing writ large was one of notable promise.

Then again, he is by no means a natural winger, and if Le Bris would prefer a wide presence capable of getting beyond their full-back and driving to the byline, then the 22-year-old might have to settle for a spot on the bench once more.

Nazariy Rusyn

Something of a forgotten man, Rusyn has barely featured in recent times, but has often looked livelier in a Sunderland shirt when utilised as a winger, rather than a more traditional central striker. With plenty of pace and a consistently laudable level of application, including the Ukrainian would have its obvious advantages, but he has been out in the cold for so long that it is difficult to envisage him making a sudden return to the starting XI.

Jewison Bennette

He couldn’t, could he? Bennette has been consigned to the U21s ever since Le Bris took charge on Wearside (and for a decent while before that too, in fairness), but he is an out-and-out left winger, and he does have first team experience to his name. It would be a monumental plot twist if he was involved in some capacity on Saturday, but stranger things have happened...