Several Sunderland players shone against Middlesbrough over the weekend, including one summer signing.
Sunderland bounced back from that 3-2 defeat vs Plymouth Argyle earlier in the month, with a confident and impressive 1-0 win vs Middlesbrough last weekend.
Chris Rigg scored an impressive goal to keep Sunderland in the top two places of the Championship table, with West Brom currently the team in 1st place.
And Rigg is stealing all the headlines right now after his back-heel goal vs Middlesbrough. There’s also several other individuals running into praise following what was a well-deserved win.
Across the pitch there were solid performances; Romaine Mundle continues his fine form with another good display vs Boro, albeit without scoring, whilst Jobe Bellingham is also earning praise for what was a combative and well-rounded performance from him.
Meanwhile, deadline day signing Chris Mepham is being hailed. He stepped in for Dan Ballard who picked up an injury vs Plymouth and was rested for the game vs Boro.
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Marco Gabbiadini verdict on Chris Mepham display in Sunderland 1-0 Middlesbrough
Sunderland signed Mepham on loan from Bournemouth on deadline day, following Aji Alese’s injury which has ruled him out for several more weeks yet.
Mepham made his debut against Boro after being an unused substitute for the game vs Plymouth Argyle, and the Welsh international barely put foot wrong.
The 26-year-old made six defensive actions on the day, including four clearances and two blocks, whilst also completing 20 passes (83% success), with three out of four duels won.
Giving his verdict on Mepham’s performance vs Boro, BBC pundit and former Sunderland man Marco Gabbiadini said on Total Sport: “He’s played at a decent level and he’s an international.
“He’s not going to be too phased by an afternoon like that which some players can be. He just stepped in like he played 50 games for us, didn’t he? It was really good.”
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Chris Mepham form may force Aji Alese change at Sunderland
In Luke O’Nien, Dan Ballard, and now Mepham, Le Bris has three solid centre-back options who he can rotate throughout the season.
But Le Bris will want some consistency with his pairing, and barring a serious injury to any of the three, we could see one of said three be on the bench for much of the campaign.
Then when Alese returns, it’ll give Le Bris a selection headache in defence. Alese though could be the perfect player to start playing that utility role at the back.
He’s capable of playing on the right or down the middle and so wherever there’s an injury, Alese could step in.
Alese’s form before his injury was too good to not play some kind of role upon his return. For Le Bris, there’s a lot of positive selection headaches right now.