Amad wasn’t ready to be a Manchester United player two seasons ago. He was ideal for Sunderland though, and Sunderland were ideal for him. Starring in the Championship, the youngster honed his attacking art against defenders who were hellbent on stopping him.
When he failed, as young players inevitably do when they are developing, he did so at a club that wanted to nurture and protect him, rather than in the global glare that inevitably attaches itself to Manchester United. Had he returned to Wearside last season, rather than languishing in the Old Trafford reserves as Erik ten Hag somehow failed to appreciate the level of talent that was staring him in the face, perhaps his career would be at an even more advanced stage now.
All of which, in a roundabout way, brings us to Chris Rigg and Jobe Bellingham, and the decisions the Sunderland duo might have to make in either the January transfer window or the summer. Or, if the rumour mill is to be believed, perhaps both.
With just over a fortnight until the window reopens, the transfer talk is ratcheting up. Borussia Dortmund want Jobe to follow in Jude’s footsteps, swapping the English Football League for the Westfalenstadion. West Ham are also reportedly lining up a January move for the 19-year-old, while Crystal Palace are ready to rekindle their interest after having bids rejected in the summer.
Not content with overseeing Amad’s continued progress, Manchester United are lining up a move for Rigg, having been in contact with the teenager’s representatives prior to him signing his first professional deal with Sunderland. [Newcastle United](http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/sport/football/newcastle) remain long-standing admirers of the 17-year-old, and there has even been talk of potential interest from Real Madrid. The seats reserved for scouts at the Stadium of Light haven’t taken much filling in the last 12 months.
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It should be stressed pretty strongly at this point that Sunderland don’t want to sell Rigg or Bellingham – either in January or the summer – and with their financial model meaning they are not in any danger of breaching Financial Fair Play rules, they don’t need to cash in on one of their starlets either.
They didn’t want to sell Jack Clarke, though, until the winger’s agitations and refusal to sign a new contract backed them into a corner, so as is generally the case in football, their decision-making over Rigg and Bellingham will not be driven by financial imperatives or demands of long-term squad building. It will largely be determined by what the respective players want.
Contractually, Sunderland are in a much stronger position than they were with Clarke. Rigg’s first senior deal, signed in the summer, was a three-year agreement that commits him to the Stadium of Light until 2027. Bellingham’s latest contract extension, also agreed in the summer, runs to the end of the 2027-28 season.
Even so, the club will struggle to hold on to either player if bids from Premier league clubs or European giants are on the table and they decide they want to leave. For both Rigg and Bellingham, though, such a move would be a huge mistake. For both players, Sunderland is the ideal home at the current stage of their respective careers.
What more could a talented, but still raw, teenager want? They are both playing week in, week out, in a team challenging for promotion. They are playing at a club that has openly placed a huge amount of faith in youth development and that is 100 per cent committed to giving young players every possible chance in the first team. They are working with a head coach who completely buys in to that ethos, and who has a proven track record of improving young players thanks to his time in the French youth system with Rennes and Lorient. And every time they walk onto the pitch, they are worshipped by a fanbase that is as passionate and demanding, in the best possible sense, as any in the country.
Would you really give that up to languish in Manchester United’s reserves for the second half of the season? Or even to be on the fringe of things at Borussia Dortmund, going stale as you wait for a five-minute substitute appearance here or a start in the DFB-Pokal there? Rigg does not turn 18 until next June, yet his outing at Swansea City at the weekend was his 45th senior appearance. Bellingham turned 19 in September, and needs just nine more senior appearances to bring up his century. He also made his England Under-21 debut earlier this season.
Of course, it’s never as simple as that, and money talks. Both Rigg and Bellingham will have agents and representatives wanting their pieces of silver. Manchester United will pay a hell of a lot more than Sunderland can. A five-year contract at West Ham would come with plenty of noughts attached.
There’s plenty of time for that, though. Eventually, both Rigg and Bellingham will get to where Amad found himself at the weekend, excelling on the Premier League stage. For now, though, they are best off at Sunderland, big fish in, dare I say it, a slightly smaller pond.
Hopefully, both players know that. You get the sense they do. At some stage in the not-too-distant future, there is every chance their resolve will be tested. They need to stand firm. Chasing the dream is all well and good, but sometimes, you need to know when to count your blessings. Sunderland can give the duo everything they need for a fair while yet.