Even at this early stage of the season, it’s already a popular topic of conversation: “Who’s been Sunderland’s best/most important/most influential signing of the summer?”
Look through the team and the candidates jump out. Reinildo? A superb addition. Habib Diarra, Noah Sadiki and Granit Xhaka? Now that’s what I call a Premier League midfield. Omar Alderete? He’d have a strong case, so wholehearted has he been thus far.
However, after he constructed a one-man last line of defence at Selhurst Park on Saturday,
denying Crystal Palace with a string of superb saves and helping the Lads to a hugely impressive point, I really feel we need to save some room in this discussion for Robin Roefs — a goalkeeper who performed so well that even Palace fans were raving about him on Saturday evening.
It’s fair to say that Saturday’s clash with the Eagles was far more about defensive nous and resilience than it was about sparkling attacking football, but just as the red and white attack didn’t click into gear in the Selhurst pressure cooker, the man between the sticks rose to the challenge with aplomb, further underlining his credentials as an emerging star of Sunderland’s new era.
The summer search for a new stopper was long, drawn-out and often frustrating, and I’ll be the first to admit that I was slightly miffed when we missed out on several goalkeeping targets, as Polish prospect Marcin Bulka headed for the Saudi Pro League and Djordje Petrović left Chelsea for Bournemouth.
Indeed, had the need arisen, I would’ve been comfortable for Sunderland to kick off the new season with Anthony Patterson between the sticks, but nobody could deny that on current evidence, Roefs represents a sizable upgrade in most areas and that the gloves will remain in his possession for some time to come.
To be frank, I don’t know what kind of negotiating tactics Florent Ghisolfi deployed when he helped to cut a deal to bring Roefs to Wearside from NEC Nijmegen, but it feels like a classic three-card trick and an absolute steal, because if his performances during the preceding three games were impressive, this was something else entirely; the kind of display that’ll make more than just Sunderland fans sit up and take notice.
One thing that Roefs possesses in spades is a trait that all the great stoppers can call upon: authority.
He exudes it. He gives off an aura of utter control every time he leaps to claim a cross or, as was the case on Saturday, he made save after save to protect our clean sheet and help the Lads to a morale-boosting draw. He’s also unafraid to be vocal, constantly cajoling his teammates and directing traffic at set pieces, and his reflexes are pin-sharp.
In Dutch footballing circles, I daresay a goalkeeper being mentioned in the same breath as the great Edwin Van Der Sar could be as hazardous as a midfielder being flagged up as ‘the next Wesley Sneijder’, but Roefs has made a hugely impressive start to life at Sunderland and clearly has ability in spades.
Of course, none of this is a slight on Anthony Patterson, a double promotion winner who graduated from the academy and helped his team to two unforgettable Wembley triumphs, but Premier League football demands broad shoulders and a big personality. Roefs has both, and the starting position will surely be his for the foreseeable future — with Patterson more than capable of deputising should the need arise.
After significant defensive upgrades were added during the summer, Roefs is currently operating behind a back four whose mutual understanding is growing with every game.
Although there have been a handful of shaky moments, the foundations are clearly being strengthened and it’ll surely improve as the season unfolds. With a stable defence and a reliable midfield, we’re laying down the groundwork for the kind of solidity that’ll carry us a long way — and Roefs has a major role to play.
Naturally, pessimism may lead us to believe that he’ll be scouted and snapped up by one of the European giants before we’ve had time to blink, but that’s for another day.
For now, he’s ours. He’s growing in both stature and confidence, he seems to be relishing the challenge of guarding Sunderland’s goal, and his presence within the Netherlands national setup proves just how highly he’s rated and how far he could go in the game.
A key position filled properly? Absolutely — and hats off to the recruitment team for doing so.
