Patrick Roberts has long been a player with respect. He’s always boasted that bit of star quality that very few players have, and although we don’t see it maybe as much as we should, he remains a key player for the Black Cats.
The 27-year-old Patrick Roberts has now been a Sunderland player since January 2022, with the Black Cats being the club’s he’s featured for the most now.
He’s played for the likes of Fulham, Manchester City, and Celtic in his career. With Sunderland, he’s made 123 total appearances, scoring nine goals and assisting 15 more.
Roberts endured a poor 2023/24 season with Sunderland but has bounced back under Regis Le Bris, with two goals and five assists in 26 Championship appearances so far this season.
But Kristjaan Speakman is eyeing up a player who could even displace Roberts in the Sunderland XI during the second half of this 2024/25 season, in Aston Villa’s Louie Barry.
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Louie Barry compared to Sunderland ace Patrick Roberts
Sunderland have been linked with Barry for several weeks now. The latest on this front is that Aston Villa want a new contract for Barry before sending him out on loan, seemingly putting to bed the idea that he could be sold in January.
Now, former Aston Villa man Alan Hutton has made a rather interesting comparison between Barry and Roberts, when discussing Celtic’s reported interest in Barry after reports that the Hoops were set to lodge a seven-figure bid to sign him.
Quoted by Glasgow World, Hutton said of Barry: “I think he is a lot like Patrick Roberts. I am not saying he is the exact same but in that type of mould. He’s technically very gifted, will get on the ball and make things happen.”
It’s thought that Aston Villa value Barry at just £7million, though no official price tag has yet been revealed.
Patrick Roberts hits back at Sunderland critics
Although Roberts has been markedly better in 2024/25 than he was in the previous season, he’s still had his share of critics.
But Roberts hit back at his Sunderland critics earlier in the season. He said: “I know I could probably do a lot more. I know myself. I’m very hard on myself.
“The first thing for me is Sunderland winning games, and I’ll take that any day over a goal and assist. But I know you need those things to win games, so I understand that point as well and I’m hoping I can add more to my game.
“I do believe a lot of myself, and I want to reach levels I’ve never reached before.”
For Roberts, given the lack of options on the right side of midfield, the competition of someone like Barry could force Roberts to really up his game and provide that cutting edge that we all know he has.
Sunderland return to Championship action against Derby County on Tuesday night.