Sunderland will hope fortune favours the bold at the Stadium of Light today, the Championship underdogs raring to go in the Tyne-Wear Derby to potentially unsettle hated neighbours Newcastle United further with an FA Cup scalp.
The Black Cats go into this full-blooded affair off the back of two wins on the spin in the second tier with spirits high, whilst a depleted Newcastle side arrive to Wearside down on their luck with three defeats from their last three in the division above.
Regardless of Michael Beale’s men coming into this Cup tie full of confidence, the new Sunderland boss will potentially drop this out-of-sorts figure for the match today.
Aji Alese had only just come back into the side after being sidelined with a long-term knock in the Preston North End win, but could find himself pushed out of the team even when back to full fitness by missing the fiercely contested Magpies encounter.
Aji Alese’s game vs Preston North End in numbers
With a whole host of defenders making up Sunderland’s injury list at this moment in time – Niall Huggins and Dennis Cirkin notable absences – Aji Alese was given the nod to start for the Black Cats last time out in Championship action.
Thrown in at the deep end at left-back by Beale, an unorthodox position for Alese to take up in a starting eleven, the 22-year-old was poor throughout the 2-0 victory without ever really impacting proceedings as his side picked up a straightforward three points.
Aji Alese’s game v Preston in numbers | |
|---|---|
Minutes played | 70 |
Clearances | 1 |
Blocked shots | 1 |
Interceptions | 1 |
Duels won | 1/2 |
Possession lost | 18 times |
Sourced by Sofascore | |
Only going in for two aerial duels all game – as per Sofascore – Alese would win just one of those battles on top of failing to launch himself into a single tackle during his forgettable 70-minute spell on the Stadium of Light turf.
Alese was notably lacklustre on the ball too, letting himself down with various wayward balls in the victory with 13 of his 43 passes in the game failing to reach their intended target.
In stark contrast, his defensive teammate, Daniel Ballard, would misplace just two of his passes as a calmer head in the back four.
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Alese’s lack of concentration on the ball would see him give up possession 18 times in the 2-0 victory, hauled off by Beale on the 70th-minute mark to give Timothee Pembele a run-out instead and a chance to impress.
The 22-year-old won’t be frozen out completely from the first team plans at Sunderland after this sub-par reintroduction into the team however, Alese could still play a key role in the months to follow as a presence to rely upon when rotation is required, with Tony Mowbray once referring to the young defender as being as “steady as a rock”.
Pembele could well have played himself into contention for the Tyne-Wear Derby subsequently, the summer signing from Paris.St Germain one option who could come in for the returning Alese.
The players who could replace Aji Alese
Alese being given a breather for the Newcastle Cup game could see Pembele afforded his first-ever Sunderland start, the former PSG man utilised twice this season as a late substitute.
His efforts against the Millers as a second-half substitute at the end of December were impressive, completing two successful dribbles as a slaloming full-back despite only being on the pitch for a mere 26 minutes.
Beale could also opt to start Jenson Seelt at left-back if he really wants to shake things up, the Dutchman filling in as a makeshift full-back on occasion this season and not looking out of place.
Whatever team is fielded by Beale for the hotly anticipated Tyne-Wear Derby, the Sunderland boss will hope the eleven on the pitch can do themselves proud on the big occasion and maybe even gain bragging rights at full-time over the Premier League favourites.
