Why Ross Stewart struggled against Plymouth Argyle as Sunderland striker's goal drought continues

The Scottish frontman has enjoyed an excellent campaign, netting 22 league goals while being named the club’s supporters’ player of the year, yet he has now gone eight matches without finding the net.

That led to an honest assessment from Black Cats boss Alex Neil after the match at Home Park, admitting the striker has been ‘flogged’ after playing continuously this term.

Sunderland’s reliance on Stewart, due to Nathan Broadhead’s injury and a lack of forward alternatives, has been clear throughout the campaign.

The Scot has started all 43 of Sunderland’s league fixtures, racking up 4135 minutes in League One, and has played more than any other attacking player in the division.

Stewart has gone on lean goalscoring spells before this campaign, going five league games without a goal at the end of last year, before scoring in the 5-0 win over Morecambe, while he went six matches without scoring before a headed equaliser against MK Dons in February.

Still, this barren run has become longer than both of those phases, and has come at a key point in the campaign.

It has often been said that Stewart offers more to the team than just his goals, with the Scot able to run into the channels, hold the ball up and be effective in the air.

That has often been the case when the forward has played up front alongside Nathan Broadhead, with chances predominately falling to the latter.

In the 12 league games Broadhead has started this season, Stewart has scored just three times while his strike partner has netted seven.

That’s not to say the pair don’t work well together, yet it shows that more chances tend to fall to the Everton loanee.

Still it was a frustrating afternoon for both of Sunderland’s frontmen at Plymouth, with the visitors registering just two efforts on target against Argyle’s strong backline.

A look at Stewart’s heatmap (figure one) shows the striker often drifted out to the left to try and receive the ball or pull apart Plymouth’s high line.

In truth the service up to Sunderland’s strikers was disappointing, with the Black Cats often forced to try and break the hosts’ high press in the first half.

Of Sunderland's 54 attempted passes into the final third, only 22 were successful (40.74 per cent), their lowest percentage of the season in that department according to football database Wyscout.

Still, the visitors’ best opportunity fell to Stewart 10 minutes before half time, when the Scot was picked out by Elliot Embleton but was thwarted by goalkeeper Michael Cooper after a heavy touch.

That chance summed up the striker’s frustrating afternoon and, while he made unselfish runs for the team, Stewart struggled to retain possession in the final third and failed to win any of his four offensive duels, according to Wyscout.

A home meeting with Cambridge United this weekend could provide an opportunity for Stewart to end his goalscoring drought, while Neil’s comments suggest he may be tempted to give the frontman a breather.