On the whistle: Your Sunderland AFC questions answered on Hemir, midfield rotation, head coach search and more

Sunderland fans have been sending in their post-match questions and comments for our new Youtube feature #onthewhistle - in which we take some time following the game to discuss all the major talking points.

You can see the latest edition after the Swansea City defeat in the video above, while Phil Smith is also going to be picking a few that come in each week to answer in a written Q&A. You can get involved by sending your questions to Phil at @Phil__Smith and @sunechosafc on X at full time or by leaving a comment under one of the videos.

Here's his first written edition of the Q&A, looking at the managerial search and some big selection dilemmas....

I know its early but who can you see being appointed in the summer?

As you say it's still very early days and I don't expect much in the way of developments for a little while yet. I think Sunderland will take their time to run a fairly lengthy and very thorough recruitment process, hopefully meaning they get a better outcome than last time.

There's also a chance, in my view, that Mike Dodds comes into contention should he oversee a particularly strong set of results over the next couple of months. I don't think Sunderland are fundamentally changing their approach, though, so you can expect them to target an 'elite' coach with what they deem to be the most cutting edge training methods. I strongly expect that they will revisit some of the potential candidates from December, given that it was in some cases availability rather than suitability that proved to be the main issue. I wrote about this at a bit more length last week, which you can read here.

KevSafc - Thoughts on Luis Hemir at the weekend? In my opinion he looked bright when he came on and gives us more of a presence through the middle. Maybe a front 3 of [Nazariy] Rusyn out wide, Hemir and [Romaine] Mundle for Norwich?

I agree that he looked bright, and more involved with the players around him than he had done at times earlier in the season. I thought the same when he came on against Hull last month, so I think there are some encouraging signs even if we haven't really seen him threatening the goal.

All three of Sunderland's bosses this season, Mowbray, Dodds and Beale, have spoken of how they really feel Hemir can add something as he is a really natural finisher in training. We saw flashes of that in pre-season, albeit not in the early league games. Mowbray was looking to get him more involved towards the end of his tenure but felt it was best to do so at home, in a game where Sunderland were likely to dominate the ball. What he meant by that was, and I think both Beale and Dodds agreed, was that at the moment his physicality out of possession and pressing isn't yet at the level where they are comfortable with him leading the line against the very strongest opposition in the league. So I would be surprised if he came into the starting XI so soon given the next three opponents, though Dodds has shown he can surprise us and he definitely caught the eye at the weekend. Maybe for now the best avenue is more minutes from the bench, with a view to a start around the international break if the signs are good?

I'd be surprised if Romaine Mundle didn't start this weekend given his encouraging cameos of late, though Sunderland are still at this early stage hopeful that Jack Clarke will be fit to play. Time will tell on that one.

Ethan Todd - If performances continue to dwindle, do you both envisage more high profile players other than Jack Clarke wanting to leave?

I certainly think it would be a testing summer if Sunderland don't go up, as I do anticipate significant interest in players other than Clarke. The main caveat is that Sunderland have got themselves in a strong position contractually, meaning they won't be under any pressure to sell. I don't ever envisage a window where the core of the side leaves at once, as the financial position is secure enough to stand firm.

I also think it's fair to say that a lot of these players are really determined to finish the job of putting Sunderland back where they belong and realise that there's a lot to be said for playing week in, week out at this stage of their careers. That was certainly the case with Clarke last summer, who was happy to be patient even as Burnley's bids arrived. Of course, this summer it looks very likely he will leave if Sunderland aren't promoted, but I don't see there being a rush for the exit otherwise.

Of course, it will be down to Sunderland to demonstrate their serious about progressing to an ambitious squad, both in their head coach decision and their player recruitment.

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JHunterSmith - Do we now just use this season as an experience builder for the likes of Chris Rigg, Timothee Pembele, Romaine Mundle?

Shaun Smith - Is it time to rest Jobe?

My feeling is it's just a bit too soon to think that way. My colleague Joe wrote this interesting piece yesterday pointing out that Sunderland were seven points adrift of the top six at this stage last season, and so it's not an insurmountable deficit by any stretch. Don't get me wrong I do think it's unlikely, given the upcoming fixtures and the fact that Coventry City, Hull City etc. look stronger than the teams in those positions this time last season.

But certainly up until that March international break, I think you have to pick the absolute strongest team you possibly can. I'd caveat that slightly by saying that I think Mundle comes very much into that equation at the moment and especially if Clarke isn't fit this weekend (hopefully he is), and I definitely would like to see Rigg get a handful of starts between now and the end of the season - Sunderland's current midfield trio have played a lot of football so a bit of rotation would be good anyway. I don't think applies just to Jobe but also to Pierre Ekwah - don't forget that both are in their first full season of senior football and have never played this regularly before. As well as Rigg I'd like to see more of Adil Aouchiche, I know he hasn't always taken his chances when starting but he always brings energy from the bench and I don't think it was great management to sideline him for so long off the back of giving that free kick away before Ipswich scored their winner at Portman Road.

Pembele also clearly needs a chance to impress, though I don't think you can keep Trai Hume out the side so long as you're in need of results.