Sunderland picked up a vital win against top six rivals Hull City on Boxing Day.
After losing 3-0 against Coventry City in his first match in charge, Michael Beale secured his first three points as Sunderland manager thanks to a wonderful goal from Jack Clarke.
Clarke drove at Hull right-back Cyrus Christie, who was reluctant to make a challenge, before expertly cutting inside and arrowing his strike into the far right corner.
With that goal, the 23-year-old took his tally to 11 and has been magnificent all season.
Of course, such blistering form has brought Premier League interest with Sunderland slapping a £25 million price tag onto his head.
The Englishman, however, hasn’t been the only standout performer in red and white with Trai Hume being recognised for his exceptional displays for club and country.
Trai Hume gets hailed as ‘superb’ after winning Northern Ireland’s Player of the Year Award
Sunderland’s tough-tackling defender has only played eight times for Northern Ireland’s senior side since making his debut in March 2022, but he’s managed to scoop the coveted Player of the Year Award.
He beat fellow teammates Dan Neil and Dan Ballard as well as Watford left-back Jamal Lewis and Bolton Wanderers striker Dion Charles to the accolade.
Hailed as ‘superb’ by journalist Michael Graham after winning the award, Hume has deserved such recognition after putting in exceptional performances on the International stage.
In the 2-0 victory over Denmark, in particular, the 21-year-old was incredible down the right flank, winning the most duels on the pitch (12) and most tackles (6), as per Sofascore.
For Sunderland supporters, Hume’s warrior-like performances for his country don’t come as a surprise having established himself as one of the best full-backs in the division.
Hume has been a bargain for Sunderland
After arriving from Linfield for a reported fee of £200k in January 2022, Hume has proven to be one of their biggest bargains in recent times.
In the Championship this season, he’s made the most tackles and interceptions of any player in the division to have featured across 14 games or more.
Whilst he’s proven to be a tackling machine, who has quickly propelled himself into the realm of fan favourite at the Stadium of Light, his positional versatility has helped Sunderland this term.
Hume has played as both a right and left-back in the absence of Dennis Cirkin and has rarely put a foot wrong.
It’s such performances that have made him undroppable for club and country.