Sunderland midfielder Dan Neil has certainly been a talking point among fans this season. Be it for good or bad.
Dan Neil was one of the saving graces for Sunderland in their disappointing 2023/24 Championship campaign.
Then going into this new season under Regis Le Bris, Sunderland made Neil club captain, handing him the armband after it was Luke O’Nien who lead the team out last time round.
There was little talk about Neil’s impact in the side until Sunderland’s defeat at Watford earlier in the season, in which Neil gave away a late penalty to hand the Hornets the win.
Sunderland fans were highly critical of Neil after that game. But he kept his head down and has put in some strong performances since, with Neil shining in Sunderland’s most recent win against Oxford United at the Stadium of Light.
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Julio Arca has his say on Dan Neil and the Sunderland captaincy
Speaking on Total Sport recently, former Sunderland man Julio Arca had his say on 22-year-old Sunderland academy man Neil.
Arca was also a captain during his playing years, captaining South Shields when they won three separate trophies during the 2016/17 season.
Towards the end of his playing career, Arca spent time coaching in the Sunderland youth ranks where he worked with a young Neil.
Arca said: “Some things can work in different ways. Obviously being the captain of any football team gives you more responsibility.
“But Dan seems to be taking this role very well. He’s a confident boy. I remember I used to coach him in the U14s when I was in the Sunderland academy, and he’s always been a confident boy.
“Obviously now, he’s a man. He’s not a boy anymore. He’s growing and his footballing is growing as well, and I think he deserves to be a captain.
“And the team is doing well, so when you put all these things together, he’s good, and I’m sure he’s enjoying this role.”
Dan Neil could be the new and improved Jordan Henderson at Sunderland
Coming through the academy ranks and playing in a central midfield role, now the captain as well, there’s a lot of similarities being drawn between him and Jordan Henderson.
Henderson is linked with a return to Sunderland ahead of January and Neil is open to Henderson returning to the club.
Neil said on the matter: “He’s a top-quality player. So whenever you get a player with top-quality players, he embraces it. Yeah, he can come back if he wants.”
And Neil getting the chance to play alongside Henderson could be exactly what he needs to take both his game and his leadership skills to the next level.
Henderson has proved his quality and leadership skills over the years and there’s surely a lot he can pass on to Neil.
Whether that happens remains to be seen. But like Arca says, Neil is captaining a winning team right now and putting in some much better performances, so making Neil captain seems to have been the right decision.