Mukiele Shines
Robin Roefs may have something to say about it, but for me, Nordi Mukiele has a real shout to be the true steal of the season. Arriving at the club for just €12m, he represents what real,
top-level quality is. His European experience indicated that we may have been onto a winner from the minute he signed, but seeing what he brings to the team in the flesh is a sight to behold.
He was an absolute brick wall at the back, despite moving into a wider fullback position; and when he got his opportunity, he found the space to strike and sent the stadium into delirium. It’s becoming clearer with every game that he has the attributes that keep a team in this division – mentality, physicality and ability.
Attracting players of his quality is a testament to how far the club has come in a stunningly short period of time – it’s real pinch yourself stuff.
Shuffled Back Line
Our defeat against Manchester United a fortnight ago was in no small part attributable to our weakened left side. The partnership of Simon Adingra and Arthur Masuaku was simply unable to compete with the pace and skill of Amad and Bryan Mbeumo.
Its no surprise, then, that Regis Le Bris took the initiative to switch up the defence, and found an intuitive way of both fortifying the left flank with Trai Hume’s steel, while managing to fit the formidable trio of Omar Alderete, Dan Ballard and Nordi Mukiele into a familiar back four formation.
The result was very promising indeed, with the lads keeping a clean sheet and offering up precious few opportunities for a misfiring Wolves side. Hume held his own on the left despite a few lax moments in the first half, and his link up with fellow full-back Mukiele led to a tidy opener.
The nice problem for Le Bris now, is who misses out on the starting XI following Reinildo’s return to the side? I’m sure it’ll be cause for discussion as we head towards the Chelsea fixture.
The SoL is a fortress
The Stadium of Light is a fortress, this much is certain. How long is it since we’ve been able to say that in the Premier League? Three wins and a draw from four games is an outstanding return, and while we are yet to welcome any of the truly top quality sides of the division to Wearside, it is a real delight to see what we’ve created under Le Bris.
This all began last season with a stellar record at home throughout the vast majority of the campaign. Bringing that forward into this season was an absolute must if we wanted to have a chance of staying, and to see how well the new lads have bought into that is immensely promising. Nobody will be looking at Sunderland (A) with joy, and that’s something to relish.
We’re proud supporters, and to finally have some home form deserving of praise in the Premier League is a joy, after what we’ve seen in the past from the disinterested and the journeymen. Long may it last!
Passive in parts
Without wanting to allow too much negativity to permeate after such an outstanding win, I do think we spent large periods of the game in an overly passive state, especially in the second half. The momentum swung entirely in Wolves’ favour, and while the clear-cut chances were few and far between for Wolves, I do believe we rode our luck to a certain extent.
The defence was excellent throughout but inviting that level of pressure inevitably leads to some opportunities for the opposition, and I believe we were somewhat fortunate to not have been playing a higher quality opponent.
It’s something we’ve seen throughout the season to an extent, and fortunately it hasn’t seemed to cost us in a particularly damaging way. Perhaps that is a sign of a fantastic defensive unit, and perhaps it is just a symptom of the quality of the league. Regardless, its something I would ideally love for us to keep out of our game as much as possible.
