Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris held his first Championship press conference on Thursday.
Sunderland’s new head coach Regis Le Bris spoke to the press on Thursday.
It was his first presser as a Championship manager, ahead of his first competitive match as Sunderland manager.
Sunderland play Cardiff City in Wales on Saturday in what promises to be a tough opening game for both teams.
Erol Bulut says Cardiff have prepared well this summer, signing the likes of previous Sunderland target Chris Willock among others.
The Black Cats meanwhile have signed four free agents; Simon Moore, Alan Browne, Ian Poveda, and Blondy Nna Noukeu.
Many more are expected to arrive at the Stadium of Light this summer, with Kristjaan Speakman desperate to sign a striker.
Le Bris spoke out on Sunderland’s striker search on Thursday and insisted that he’s happy with his current options, suggesting that Eliezer Mayenda will start vs Cardiff City.
Le Bris also spoke about Luis Hemir, who’s proved to be a quite controversial figure among Sunderland fans.
Regis Le Bris gives verdict on Luis Hemir at Sunderland
Hemir, 20, was one of a handful of attackers brought in last summer to try and bolster what was Tony Mowbray’s attacking department.
But Portuguese striker Hemir would fail to score in 23 Championship outings for the Black Cats.
Sunderland fans criticised Hemir throughout the campaign for his tired performances; a main criticism of his was his work-rate both in and out of possession.
This summer, Hemir has featured sporadically for Sunderland, with Mayenda being Le Bris’ preferred option up top.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Thursday, Le Bris gave his verdict on Hemir, saying: “Hemir is still young.
“We need to understand that the responsibility at the club is very important.
“We need to drill their foundations to be able to do that later.
“I think Hemir has great potential really but at the moment he’s not ready for that.”
Sunderland striker search is harming Luis Hemir development
In an ideal world, Sunderland would’ve brought in one or even two strikers by now, and loaned Hemir out.
But the fact that no new striker has arrived means that Hemir has to be kept around, purely for squad depth in attack.
So Speakman really has a lot to do in the final weeks of the season.
Hemir remains someone with potential, but like Le Bris says, he’s not quite at Championship level yet.
Though it’s certainly in Sunderland’s best interest to send Hemir out on loan and allow him to develop and start to fulfil his potential.
If Sunderland can do that, and bring in a new striker or two, it could yet be a decent transfer window for the Black Cats.