Sunderland were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw away at Preston North End in the Championship on Wednesday night.
Sunderland keep their spot at the top of the Championship table, but fail to re-open a gap to 2nd place following what was a quite tiresome performance at Deepdale.
Regis Le Bris’ side looked better in the second when the likes of Romaine Mundle and Patrick Roberts came off the bench. Goalkeeper Simon Moore was the one who kept the Black Cats in the game in the first 45, though.
Here are the five key talking points from Sunderland’s game at Preston North End…
Regis Le Bris ready to shake it up at Sunderland?
Le Bris surprised many with his team selections against Preston, bringing in Tom Watson for his first start, also handing a first start to Aaron Connolly.
For the first 13 games of the season, Le Bris has stuck with mainly the same XI, only really changing when he had to because of suspensions or injuries.
After Sunderland’s 0-0 draw against QPR last weekend, there were a few cries for Le Bris to start really rotating and utilising his squad, though it boasted mixed results in the game against Preston.
Expect a return to full strength against Coventry City at the Stadium of Light this weekend.
Wilson Isidor is much more dangerous in middle
Before Wilson Isidor really got a run out with Sunderland, Le Bris suggested that he could play on the left for the Black Cats.
He’s been playing as the lone striker so far. But Le Bris deployed Isidor on the left against Preston and Connolly down the middle.
Though we barely saw anything of Isidor. On top of that, Connolly struggled to make too much of an impact too.
Going off this game at least, it seems like Isidor remains the best option down the middle.
Sunderland’s Aaron Connolly conundrum
Connolly was brought off in the second half following what was an overall quite poor performance from him.
It wasn’t for a lack of effort, but Connolly just couldn’t get into the game or cause Preston’s backline any issues by himself.
It may leave Le Bris thinking that Connolly remains more impactful as a substitute, or even as one of two strikers or a wider player.
Connolly is a proven Championship striker, but not yet a proven Sunderland striker.
- READ MORE: Preston player admits he’s a ‘big supporter’ of Sunderland and watches them ‘week in, week out’
Tom Watson’s performance, and possible frustrations
Watson is becoming a real talking point for Sunderland, no less after he made his first start for the club on Wednesday night.
He’s had to be very patient. But Le Bris then hands him his first start on the right side of the attack, when his best position is on the left.
For Watson, who was brought off midway through the second half, it might have been frustrating as he’s still to get the chance to really showcase his qualities for the first-team.
We’ve seen what he can do for the U21s and he had some good touches against Preston despite playing on the left.
There’s still more to come from him, but what approach Le Bris takes with Watson remains to be seen.
A tough outing for Alan Browne on his Preston return
Alan Browne, who left Preston and joined Sunderland in the summer, had a tough outing on his return to Deepdale on Wednesday night.
He came into the XI in place of the suspended Jobe Bellingham, as was expected, being one of three deeper-lying central midfielders.
But the midfield was overrun at times. Browne has received some criticism from Sunderland fans on social media for his performance, with some particularly poor set-piece taking from the Irishman.
He’s been a good signing overall, though Wednesday’s performance was not his best; Browne recorded 48 touches (fifth-most for Sunderland) but ended the game with 70% pass completion (joint third-worst of any Sunderland starter on the night).