Patrick Roberts came off the bench to save the day for Sunderland on Tuesday night, but he probably shouldn’t even have been playing.
Sunderland kept their unbeaten run at the Stadium of Light in tact thanks to an injury time equaliser from Patrick Roberts.
Regis Le Bris’ side had dominated the first half, but fell behind partway through the second after some calamitous defending.
In a twist of fate, Roberts had started the game on the bench, but was forced on early in the match after a worrying injury to wonderkid Tommy Watson.
Patrick Roberts played through illness vs Bristol City
But, Roberts may not have been part of the plan at all on Tuesday night, as the winger revealed to the Sunderland Echo that he was feeling very ill before the game.
He said: “I was coughing. I had blocked nose, blocked ears. I’m starting to feel better. You go out in the fresh air and it kicks in again.”
Roberts added that the illness has also affected his teammate, Luke O’Nien, explaining: “He’s not here. The only day I’ve seen him is on Saturday. He’s not prone to being ill. You’ve known him longer than I’ve known him. He’s not a man to be ill.
“He trooped on on Saturday, which is all credit to him. I think just [against Bristol City] it was too much to go again. That’s fine. We had other players to fill in. Obviously, he is a big miss. I’m starting to feel better. You go out in the fresh air and it kicks in again.”
Luke O’Nien was a huge miss for Sunderland against Bristol City, but the fact that Roberts managed to play on through the problem is huge testament to his commitment, and it was a good job he was on hand in the end.
Illness probably explains why Roberts was dropped despite Stoke City masterclass
We had assumed Patrick Roberts was nailed on to start against Bristol City after his impressive display against Stoke City at the weekend.
It was a shock, then, to see Roberts dropped to the bench and Eliezer Mayenda coming into the starting lineup on Tuesday night. Now, that decision makes a lot of sense.
In the end, Roberts was our man of the match against Bristol City, and hopefully he’s over his illness now and ready to go again on Saturday for the trip to Swansea.