One Sunderland star received high praise following the 3-1 victory over Plymouth Argyle on Saturday afternoon.
Say it quietly, but Michael Beale may be starting to earn some admirers at Sunderland after securing two very important results.
The Black Cats followed up their 1-1 draw against North East rivals Middlesbrough by dispatching Plymouth at the Stadium of Light to move back into sixth position.
Sunderland initially went behind in the contest when Ryan Hardie’s strike put the visitors in front before Beale’s men fought back as goals from Pierre Ekwah, Jack Clarke and Jobe Bellingham secured all three points.
Clarke continued his exceptional run of form and Patrick Roberts dazzled on his return but there was one man who stole the plaudits with his display, and that was academy graduate Dan Neil.
Dan Neil was ‘exceptional’ in 3-1 win vs Plymouth
For the majority of the campaign, Neil has been used as an advanced playmaker alongside Bellingham, giving him license to maraud forward and affect the game in the final third.
In the last three Championship matches, though, Beale has swapped Pierre Ekwah into the number eight role and deployed the 22-year-old as a midfield anchor.
It’s a tactical decision that has worked a treat for Sunderland, who have since gone three unbeaten and Neil has performed incredibly well in the deep-lying role.
He was excellent at shutting down attacks and driving into space, winning four ground duels and completing two successful dribbles, as per Sofascore.
The homegrown Sunderland star was also a maestro and worked his magic throughout with his superb passing range, quickly releasing Bellingham to assist for his goal while recording a 91% pass completion, making two key passes and accurately placing four long balls.
Phil Smith of the Sunderland Echo applauded Neil for his performance at full-time, handing him a rating of nine.
He wrote: “Nothing short of exceptional in the second half. Shut down counters and won duels but also drove forward into space time and time again. Set up the third goal with a brilliant challenge and quick release to Jobe. 9”
What a player
Journalist Michael Graham also described his performance as “running the show”, while supporters were quick to wax lyrical about his incredible display.
There’s no wonder several Premier League clubs wanted him in January.
He’s someone who can do everything; he can break up play, read the game superbly, pick out all types of passes and drive his team forward.
Midfielders with those attributes, especially in the modern age, are like gold dust.
Sunderland will hope to keep hold of him in the summer, but with top-flight clubs circling, they may need to enjoy these levels of displays while they can.