Régis Le Bris delivers interesting Sunderland striker verdict amid growing competition between Eliezer Mayenda, Brian Brobbey and Wilson Isidor
Sunderland head coach Régis Le Bris has offered his backing to striker Eliezer Mayenda despite the teenager drawing blanks in his last two Premier League appearances and facing fresh competition for a starting spot following the arrival of Brian Brobbey from Ajax.
Mayenda, 20, has started all three of Sunderland’s league games so far this season, scoring on the opening day against West Ham before going without a goal against Burnley and Brentford. In contrast, fellow forward Wilson Isidor has made an impact from the bench, scoring twice this season, but is still awaiting his first league start.
The competition for places has intensified further following the deadline-day signing of Brian Brobbey, with the Dutch international adding another attacking option for Le Bris. Speaking ahead of the Brentford game and before the Black Cats’ capture of Brobbey, Le Bris played down concerns about Mayenda’s recent misses, including a key chance in the defeat to Burnley.
"I think it's okay, it's okay, it's part of the process. If we think about last season, I think it happened like that. It started with one or two big chances, didn't score. But finally, it was really good during the season. So a striker, a player in different positions, can make mistakes, or sometimes the goalkeeper can make a big save as well and stay confident, support him, and I think it will be okay."
When asked if he still viewed Mayenda as his first-choice striker, Le Bris insisted he has full confidence in the young forward but highlighted the benefit of having multiple attacking options: "We'll have two or three options in this position, so is it really important?
“I'm confident, yes, 100 per cent, and I know that it won't be linear, it's always like that. Sometimes he will be confident, he can close his eyes and score, and it will be more difficult, maybe sometimes, so just support him and trust him. At the other end of the pitch, obviously."
Sunderland return to Premier League action this weekend when they travel to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace, with Le Bris expected to have a decision to make away from home over his attacking setup following Brobbey’s arrival.
Régis Le Bris on Sunderland’s chances of survival
The Frenchman has overseen an encouraging start to the season, which has seen his side win two of their first three matches – beating West Ham and Brentford in front of more than 45,000 fans at the Stadium of Light – while suffering a 2-0 defeat away to Burnley. They now face a tough test on the road against Crystal Palace next weekend.
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"I'm really positive, really positive because one of the main challenges when you get promoted like that is to strengthen the squad, and it's not an easy task because the investment, the way you work together to recruit so many new players, is a massive challenge, and I think so far we are really good," Le Bris said.
"I'm thinking about the owner, the sporting direction, the recruitment structure and everyone who was involved in that process. I think it's really impressive. After that, obviously, you have to face new challenges and put into practice the quality of the squad, and it's a process. At the minute, I'm happy. After that, we'll see throughout the season."
Sunderland invested heavily during the summer transfer window to reshape the squad, with more than £150million spent to give Le Bris the tools to compete in the top flight. Among the standout arrivals was Switzerland international Granit Xhaka, who joined from Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth around £17.5million.
Asked if he could have imagined such backing when he took charge, Le Bris admitted: "I don't know. It's a good question. I'm happy, I repeat, I'm happy with the process, the energy of the club, the ambition, the desire to seize this opportunity. We know that to grow as a club in this league, it's a tough challenge. It's not linear, so we don't know what will happen in the future. But right now, at the minute, we can feel that we are well-organised and ambitious."
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