Two of Sunderland’s top attacker targets uncovers a caveat in one of them that Kristjaan Speakman must be wary of.
Sunderland’s pursuit of strikers in the January transfer window seemingly appears to be going to the wire.
With just over a week left until the window slams shut, Sunderland have still made just the one, although a necessary and ambitious signing, with Enzo Le Fee joining on loan from Roma, with the Black Cats owning an obligation to buy the midfielder if promotion to the Premier League is achieved.
Nonetheless, Sunderland are still looking to add a striker to their side, with the breakdown in transfer over both Tom Cannon and Ben Brereton Diaz, who joined Sheffield United, not dampening their spirits.
Two players they currently find themselves keeping tabs on is KVC Waterlo striker Matija Frigan and Preston North End attacker Emil Riis, and a comparison between the two suggests the route that Sunderland should go down.
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Sunderland striker targets Emil Riis and Matija Frigan comparison
When looking at the two players side-by-side, per SofaScore, very little in fact separates the strikers, making it clear the exact mould of striker that both Kristjaan Speakman and Regis Le Bris want to acquire.
On the surface, the pair are very similar in regards to goalscoring output, with 26-year-old Riis bagging seven in the Championship, whilst Frigan has six to his name in the Belgian Pro League.
They also both hold a similar stature, with Riis and Frigan standing at 6ft2 and 6ft respectively, tallying similar stats in regards to aerial ability as well.
However, the way they differ goes beyond the surface level stats, and it is a matter of ability and guaranteed goalscoring prowess at Championship level, something which brings out one winner.
Emil Riis deal should be pursued as Championship experience stands out
Looking at Sunderland’s previous links to strikers, it is clear that they want one thing…guaranted goalscoring ability in the Championship.
Cannon, Brereton Diaz and Chuba Akpom all had that potential of bagging double-figures in half a season of Championship football, which is why they were targeted, and whilst Riis doesn’t quite offer that same output, it would be much less of a risk to go for him in comparison to Frigan.
At this stage of the season, Sunderland need to give themselves every chance of defying the odds of achieving promotion, and doing this would mean looking to where that guaranteed goalscoring threat will come from, and whilst the 21-year-old Frigan could be a top player in the future, all eyes must be on short-term recruitment.