Despite a strong win on Saturday, Sunderland goalkeeper Anthony Paterson is coming under the spotlight once again.
On Saturday afternoon, Sunderland beat Cardiff City 2-1 to put another three points on the board and keep the heat on 3rd place Burnley, who remain six points ahead of the Black Cats after a 4-0 win over Luton Town.
Regis Le Bris’ side remain in 4th place of the Championship table and look nailed on for a spot in the play-offs, with 13 points separating them and West Brom in 6th. But many fans are starting to think that goalkeeper Anthony Patterson needs to be dropped.
Sunderland fans have criticised Patterson in recent weeks and again against Cardiff, many thought he was at fault for the goal. Thankfully, his teammates bailed him out.
Eliezer Mayenda had initially given Sunderland the lead after just two minutes of the game, with Chris Mepham then proving to be the unlikely match-winner late in the second half, scoring his first goal in red and white.
Gary Bennett urges Regis Le Bris to stick with Anthony Patterson at Sunderland
Patterson has had a few blunders in recent weeks. The 24-year-old had a particularly poor game in the 1-0 defeat against Hull City last month, scoring an own goal as Sunderland slumped to their first home league defeat of the season so far.
Many supporters want to see Simon Moore come back into the XI. But speaking on Total Sport after the game against Cardiff, Bennett has defended Patterson, and he’s urged Le Bris to stick with the Black Cats academy graduate.
Bennett said: “I thought he should’ve done better. Teams now are putting balls in the box especially to try and test Patterson. But I just think we’ve got to stick with him. He’s done well. He’s a great shot-stopper.”
What Regis Le Bris thinks about Anthony Patterson’s current form
Speaking after Patterson’s nightmare against Hull City, Le Bris rushed to defend the Sunderland goalkeeper and remind everyone that he’s had a good overall season.
Le Bris said: at the start of March: “It’s important to repeat that Anthony has been very consistent. It was the only goal of that game so the consequences were really important. But if you focus on the 34 games we’ve played with him, he’s been really good.”
Patterson currently has the 7th-most clean sheets of any Championship goalkeeper this season with 11 to his name, compared to his 13 in the 2023/24 Championship campaign.
But his individual errors are proving costly and there must come a point where Le Bris says enough is enough. Whether that point comes against Preston on Tuesday night remains to be seen.