Sunderland youngster Timur Tutierov has revealed how Exeter City's relegation battle transformed his understanding of senior football.

Timur Tutierov believes his difficult loan spell at Exeter City played an important role in preparing him for life in Sunderland's first team, admitting the experience taught him some harsh lessons about the demands of senior football.

The Ukrainian youngster spent the second half of last season on loan at the League One club, where he experienced the pressure of a relegation battle as Exeter ultimately dropped into League Two. Tutierov joined the Grecians in January 2026 and made an immediate impression, scoring in his first two appearances. However, results deteriorated dramatically, with Exeter winning just once in their final 20 league matches.

Reflecting on that experience, Tutierov explained how the demands of senior football differed significantly from what he had encountered in Sunderland's academy. "You know, senior football is very different to academy football in terms of you have things to achieve," he said. "Last season I was relegated with Exeter, and we were fighting to stay in the league, and this experience gave me a lot because that’s a different environment where you have to give your all every training session.

"There is no training session where you say, ‘Okay, we can run around and do things that we want to do.’ You have to do this, and you have to do that and this; for me, is the difference between youth football and adult football. There are sequences you have to do."

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Despite the disappointment of relegation, Tutierov believes the experience made him a more intelligent player, particularly when it came to understanding the standards required to retain a place in a senior squad. "My mentality doesn’t change," he continued.

"I think I am exactly the same person, but I have become wiser over the year after this experience. But it has definitely shown me because when I played in the under-21s, we had lots of conversations with coaches about switching to play men’s football, which it was in Exeter. But again, I came into the team when they had great momentum, and they were winning, but that quickly changed, and that was a realisation: I have to do certain things every time to be in the squad."

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