Sunderland have been through the wringer over the last ten decade or so, fighting against relegation from the Premier League valiantly on a regular basis before dropping out of the top flight in the 2016-17 season and never returning since.
Back-to-back relegations down to League One saw a dark cloud hang over the Stadium of Light that never looked like lifting, with the club staying put in the third tier as a big fish in a small pond for three successive gruelling campaigns before promotion was finally sealed via the playoffs in 2022.
Sunderland table finishes | Points |
|---|---|
20th position in the Premier League – 2016-17 | 24 points |
24th position in the Championship – 2017-18 | 37 points |
5th in League One (promoted) – 2021-22 | 84 points |
Fast forward to now, Tony Mowbray’s side are very much in the promotion reckoning this season – fighting it out for a playoff spot amongst a whole cluster of teams dreaming of making the step-up to the promised land of the Premier League possible.
With the current wave of positivity at Sunderland infectious, the hardened Black Cats faithful will have blocked out memories of past players who flopped during those tough times that saw the club fall down to the third tier.
Jack Rodwell is a name that has been understandably lost to the past, the ex Manchester City man a notable dud at the Stadium of Light.
How much Sunderland signed Jack Rodwell for
Sunderland would break the bank to bring Rodwell into the building in 2014, signing the central midfielder for £10m after a short-lived spell at the Etihad.
Rodwell would never justify that price tag when pulling on the Black Cats strip however, a move plagued by off-field issues that saw him become a pantomime villain for the Sunderland fans to routinely jeer at.
It even led to Chronicle Live journalist James Hunter – at the time of his departure from the club – labelling Rodwell as the ‘worst signing in Sunderland’s history’ – a title Rodwell certainly won’t wear like a badge of honour looking back on this period of his career.
Jack Rodwell’s statistics at Sunderland
Rodwell’s disastrous time at Sunderland did start with the midfielder showing signs of his quality, scoring three goals from 23 appearances during this debut top-flight season with the club.
However, when Sunderland succumbed to relegation to the Championship, Rodwell’s time with the club started to unravel.
The former number eight was even demoted to the U23 ranks amidst the club’s period of freefall to the second tier and lower, notably falling out with Sunderland boss Chris Coleman during that depressing time span.
Rodwell would only go on to make just three more appearances for the club in their doomed Championship relegation campaign, leaving the club after this season with his contract was torn up before the League One season got underway.
Earning a reported £70k per week – on top of costing £10m – Rodwell goes down as a colossal waste of money for what he offered the Black Cats during an ill-fated stay.
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Sunderland will look back on this sale with regret now, especially as the current crop of Black Cats attackers continue to fire blanks.
Yet, the now 32-year-old is still playing well into the twilight of his career at Sydney FC regardless of this bruising experience.
What Jack Rodwell did after leaving Sunderland
In the immediate aftermath of his Sunderland exit, Rodwell was on the books at a number of EFL clubs – trialling with Watford, whilst going on to win deals with Blackburn Rovers and Sheffield United.
Making only two appearances for the Blades, Rodwell did fare better at Ewood Park – scoring one goal from 22 appearances for Blackburn.
Relocating to Australia however has seen Rodwell reignite his career slightly, playing for both Western Sydney Wanderers and Sydney FC in recent memory.
The 32-year-old even has a goal from limited appearances for Sydney FC to date, playing further back in the A-League as a centre-back option.
Rodwell – now valued at just £172k by Football Transfers’ xTV model – has seemingly found his feet again after the move to Sunderland had the potential to swallow him whole completely and leave him disenchanted with football altogether, whilst the Black Cats continue to search for a return to the Premier League after years in the wilderness.
