One Sunderland gem has been taking lessons from Jack Clarke in training recently.
Jack Clarke has established himself as one of the best players in the Championship since Sunderland won promotion in 2022.
The attacker now has 24 goals and 16 assists in 84 appearances in the second tier, resulting in heavy interest from the Premier League in his services.
The Black Cats will be in big trouble once he inevitably leaves this summer, and the club are likely already on the hunt for his replacement.
Oxford United winger Josh Murphy has recently been linked with a move to Wearside having scored six goals and provided four assists in his last 12 outings in League One.
Sunderland are likely to have plenty of cash to replace Clarke though and could look further afield than picking up a free agent from the third tier.
They may also look closer to home to bolster their attack though, with a number of academy players on the verge of making their breakthrough.
Chris Rigg has already established himself as a regular in the senior team recently, despite only turning 16 years old last summer.
Jack Clarke mentoring his 17-year-old lookalike
Another name that is on many fans’ lips is Tom Watson, who has now scored three goals in as many games for the U21s.
Sunderland have been urged to give the teenager a chance in the first team before the end of the season, having made his senior debut a year ago but failing to feature since.
Watson could well be given an opportunity with the first team next season though, while the Sunderland Echo have reported that he has been training alongside Clarke and has been ‘afford the chance to learn’ from the 23-year-old.
Watson has previously been compared to Clarke in both his appearance and playing style, so learning from his teammate can only boost his development before he moves to the top flight in a couple of months.
The report claims that the youngster would have likely been promoted to the senior team while Clarke and Patrick Roberts were sidelined this season if it wasn’t for his own hamstring problem, so could now look to make an impact in the new campaign.
Can Tom Watson force his way into the first team?
Interest in Jack Clarke’s signature is likely to grow again once the season ends and it seems more and more likely that he will leave, with Sunderland not even coming close to winning promotion themselves.
While fans will hope that the club can bring in a high quality winger with bags of goals in the Championship to replace him, it would also be great to see Tom Watson given plenty of chances as a back-up.
He certainly isn’t as highly-rated as Chris Rigg, but Watson definitely has a lot of potential and I would have a lot more faith in him to make an impact than the likes of Abdoullah Ba and Jewison Bennette.
The Easington-born forward is also likely to attract his own interest given his form for the U21s, but Sunderland need to ensure him that he will be given a chance with the seniors before he is lured elsewhere.