Tony Mowbray has told Sunderland’s strikers what they must learn from the Championship.
Speaking to the Sunderland Echo, the Black Cats boss claimed that his young players were on ‘a journey’, but suggested the club don’t really have time to wait for the goals to come.
Sunderland made it another game without a goal from their four strikers, despite registering 24 shots as they were beaten 2-0 by Plymouth Argyle.
The Wearside outfit were desperate for a goalscoring forward while Ross Stewart was sidelined, before he secured a deadline day move to Southampton in September.
Kristjaan Speakman eventually brought in Nazariy Rusyn, Hemir Semedo, Eliezer Mayenda and Mason Burstow over the summer, but all four are still yet to score from a total of 32 appearances this season.
Tony Mowbray has been left frustrated by Sunderland’s struggles in front of goal after they slipped down to ninth place in the Championship. However, he has admitted that there is still plenty for these players to learn.
“It’s frustrating for us,” Mowbray said. “We have to be better but it’s a journey for young players, or inexperienced players is probably the best thing to say.
“Generally the young players we play are players from abroad as well from France, and Spain, Ukraine. They are learning about the English Championship as we go along.
“They’ll learn there are big, strong, powerful defenders who will block your shots and get in the way of all your efforts or be physical and come over the top of you for headers. They have to learn. This is the English Championship and it’s a pretty unforgiving league.”
Did Sunderland make a mistake in signing our four strikers?
It is quite clear that Sunderland’s new strikers have a lot to learn, but that was pretty obvious before we even signed them.
Eliezer Mayenda, Mason Burstow and Hemir Semedo had only scored one senior goal between them before moving to Wearside, while Nazariy Rusyn’s all came in Ukraine.
No one ever really expected them to come here and start banging the goals in like they had been playing in the Championship for years, but that doesn’t mean it is not any less annoying that the club decided to bring them in.
It is certainly not the players fault, and unless the board do something about it in January we can wave goodbye to our hopes of promotion.