Dan Neil has shared what he said to Niall Huggins after the Sunderland defender suffered his latest injury.
Niall Huggins joined Sunderland from Leeds United in 2021, but managed only five league appearances before the current campaign.
It wasn’t long after his free transfer to Wearside that he suffered a stress fracture in his back that sidelined him for four to five months, before the problems seemed to happen all over his body and kept him out of action for most of the next two years.
Huggins made his comeback this season though, taking advantage of Dennis Cirkin’s injury and really impressing on the left side of defence.
The 23-year-old looked set to retain a regular spot in the Sunderland squad, but was left heartbroken when he had to be stretchered off in the 3-0 defeat against Coventry City last month.
Huggins is now set to miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery, adding to his horrendous injury record since joining the club.
Dan Neil has now spoken about about his teammate’s latest injury and has shared what he told the defender after he was forced off at the Stadium of Light.
Speaking to Sunderland Echo, Neil said: “I text him on the night time after the injury and that’s a real bitter pill to swallow.
“I think last year he was frustrated, we were frustrated because we wanted him back in the squad and he was picking up niggles here, there and everywhere.
“I thought the last two or three months where he has been playing week in, week out he’s probably been up there as one of our best players. I thought he brought a new dimension to the squad in that full-back area and thought he had been absolutely brilliant.
“As a squad we are really gutted for him. We just have to get around him now and make sure he comes back. I said ‘listen, you’ve done it before, the stages of rehab and have come back better. You are going to come back better this time.”
How long will Niall Huggins stay at Sunderland?
I would argue one of Sunderland’s strongest positions is left-back, with Niall Huggins, Dennis Cirkin and Aji Alese all proving themselves as excellent players in the Championship.
However, they have all really struggled with injuries since moving to Wearside, with the latter currently occupying the position after spending most of 2023 on the sidelines.
Recent reports have claimed Huggins was in talks with Sunderland over a new deal prior to his injury, and hopefully we can still stick to our word there.
The Leeds United academy product was brilliant in the first half of the season and deserves to be given a second chance when he eventually returns.