Sunderland fans witnessed a wonder goal this week thanks to Romaine Mundle, but one of the club’s fringe players matched that with his own stunner while out on loan.
The Black Cats were only able to take one point from Preston North End on Tuesday night, with a 1-1 draw salvaged in the closing stages thanks to Mundle’s incredible effort.
The result wasn’t the end of the world, given both Sheffield United and Burnley dropped points, and Coventry City ended up failing to win, leaving a nice gap for Sunderland in fourth place.
But, while Regis Le Bris’ side are pushing for promotion, one Sunderland player out on loan was impressing for his temporary team last night.
Adil Aouchiche’s unbelievable goal for Portsmouth
Portsmouth may have fallen to a surprising and disappointing defeat to bottom of the table Plymouth Argyle on Wednesday night, but the highlight of the game was undoubtedly Adil Aouchiche’s long-range effort.
It was little more than a late consolation goal, sadly, with Portsmouth 2-0 down at that point, but Aouchiche’s 89th minute goal was enough to get tongues wagging across the Football League, as fans and pundits alike praised his strike.
The ball dropped to Aouchiche on the edge of the area and, after taking one touch to get the ball out from under his feet, the Frenchman unleashed a lovely, clean strike on goal that flew into the top corner.
Aouchiche appeared to almost use a combination of laces and the outside of his right foot to hit the ball, producing one of the best goals of the week, and a genuine goal of the month contender.
It’s just a shame he will probably lose to his Sunderland colleague, Mundle.
Regis Le Bris has to use Aouchiche next season
Portsmouth fans have been impressed by Aouchiche already, and it’s easy to see why. He’s a quality player, who in truth, could have been useful for Sunderland had they kept him in January.
Still, it’s all part of Sunderland’s plan for Aouchiche, with the winger merely getting experience under his belt until the end of the season before hopefully becoming more important for the Black Cats next term.
If he continues to prove his worth to Portsmouth, surely Le Bris will have no option but to incorporate Aouchchie into his plans for next season, especially if Sunderland remain in the Championship.
Failure to secure promotion this year will surely see some big names departing Sunderland, but that’s where players like Aouchiche can step up and grab the opportunity that will come their way for 2025/26.