Michael Beale will want to start his reign as Sunderland’s new head coach with a win, silencing vocal critics instantly by steering his Black Cats side to a victory on his debut against Coventry City.
The former Rangers boss will hope that his short time in the job post to date means his methods and ideas have potentially rubbed off the squad at this disposal already, wanting to leave his mark on the talented personnel at the Stadium of Light who picked up two wins from three games under previous interim boss Mike Dodds.
The new Beale era at the Tyne and Wear club will an intriguing one to watch from a distance, starting with the match versus the Sky Blues today.
Here’s what the 43-year-old head coach could pick for today’s tricky game, with some changes from the starting XI that lost 1-0 to Bristol City last time out.
1
GK – Anthony Patterson
Anthony Patterson will retain his spot in goal for Beale’s first game in charge, the 23-year-old ever-present under Tony Mowbray and Dodds before him in the second tier with six clean sheets secured.
2
RB – Trai Hume
Likewise, Beale will not want to be too brash with his team selection when it comes to his right-back choice either. Trai Hume has been a consistent performer for the promotion hopefuls all season long, winning all of his duels last match – as per Sofascore – even as his team fell to a defeat.
3
CB – Daniel Ballard
Daniel Ballard may also remain in the lineup for the home game against Coventry, eager to pick up another clean sheet at the back.
The imposing 24-year-old titan starred in a recent 2-1 win over West Bromwich Albion at the Stadium of Light, heading in Sunderland’s first of the night whilst remaining resolute at the back with three tackles registered.
4
CB – Luke O’Nien
Luke O’Nien will more than likely partner Ballard in the heart of the defence, the ex-Wycombe Wanderers man loved by the Black Cats masses for his no-nonsense demeanour on a football pitch.
Much like Hume, he shone even when his team lost away at Ashton Gate last time out – Sunderland’s captain losing just one duel in the game.
5
LB – Niall Huggins
Niall Huggins arguably had the weakest game out of the back four away to Liam Manning’s Robins, but should still keep his starting spot in the team owing to his contributions in other games this campaign.
Averaging 4.8 ball recoveries per game this season, Huggins is useful not just as an aggressive full-back but also as an expansive presence who can help his team in forays up the pitch.
6
CM – Pierre Ekwah
Beale will hope he can get the best out of Pierre Ekwah on his arrival to the Stadium of Light, batting away Premier League clubs interested in securing the midfielder this January by valuing him as a key part of his Sunderland jigsaw.
Sunderland’s number 39 stood out at Ashton Gate in Dodds’ final hurrah as interim boss, amassing 82 touches of the ball in Bristol as a calm orchestrator playing out from a holding role.
7
CM – Dan Neil
Dan Neil will also stay in the lineup alongside midfield partner Ekwah, the Black Cats academy product now a key individual at the club after progressing through the age brackets all the way up to the senior side.
Neil was quiet last match away at Bristol City but showed against West Brom his quality going forward, cleverly finishing off a breakaway move with a dinked finish over Alex Palmer in the opposing goal.
The 22-year-old will hope to see in the new Beale era with a goal, picking up his fifth goal of the campaign already if successful in his pursuit against the Sky Blues.
8
RW – Patrick Roberts
Patrick Roberts will also start Beale’s first game, hoping that a new manager in the dug-out can get the best out of him again after a slow start to this season.
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Roberts has been nowhere near his skillful best this campaign so far – only managing one paltry goal contribution from 20 games played- and will want to get out of this rut soon under the guidance of a new figure in the dug-out.
9
CAM – Alex Pritchard
On the contrary, Alex Pritchard will hope he can keep up his new-found lease of life playing for Sunderland under Beale that was awakened under Dodds.
Pritchard picked up three assists from as many games under the ex interim boss, able to get his Black Cats career up and running again after being reduced to a bit-part player under Mowbray.
Beale will likely stick with Pritchard for his opening game, assessing how well the 30-year-old does against Mark Robins’ Coventry before potentially switching him out of the side for Adil Aouchiche who is nine years younger and would be more in-keeping with the youthful squad overall.
10
LW – Jack Clarke
The first switch that Beale could possibly make is reverting Jack Clarke back to the left wing, Dodds playing Clarke up top as a lone striker away at Bristol City last match which did not really work.
It was a positional switch that did make sense on paper however – Clarke scoring ten times this season from down the channels compared to the crop of Sunderland strikers continuing to fire blanks – but the ex-Tottenham attacker excels at creating openings down the wing as opposed to simply finishing off chances put on a plate for him.
Abdoullah Ba would have to make way for Beale to place the electric 23-year-old back in a more familiar position, Ba lacklustre last match with zero duels won and zero successful dribbles managed.
11
ST – Jobe Bellingham
The only player coming in from the cold for this game at the Stadium of Light two days before Christmas would be Jobe Bellingham, the £6.5k per week teenager – as per Capology – wasted simply making up the numbers on the bench.
Beale could slot Bellingham into the team in an unorthodox lone striker role, but this switch to a centre forward position for the 18-year-old wouldn’t be the first time such a change has occurred this season.
Bellingham has featured infrequently as a centre forward this season – playing there three times in the second tier in a Black Cats strip – and so it could work against Coventry.
Deemed as an “integral” part of the Tyne and Wear team as stated by Carlton Palmer talking to Football League World recently, it’s key that Beale manages to shoehorn Bellingham into the lineup somehow to utilise his talent rather than making him watch on again.
Predicted Sunderland lineup vs Coventry City – GK: Patterson; RB – Hume, CB – Ballard, CB – O’Nien, LB – Huggins; CM – Ekwah, CM – Neil; RW – Roberts, CAM – Pritchard, LW – Clarke; ST – Bellingham
