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Sunderland coach Graeme Murty has urged English football to trial a new development model after facing Anderlecht
Speaking after Sunderland’s under-21s 2–2 draw with Anderlecht at the Stadium of Light, Graeme Murty praised the Belgian side’s development model – and admitted he would welcome a similar “experiment” in English football.
Anderlecht’s under-21s equivalent play in Belgium’s second division, regularly facing senior professionals in a competitive league structure. Asked if that gives them an advantage, Murty said it offers a different type of development, but one that could be hugely beneficial if replicated in England.
“I think it's different,” he said when asked about his opponents having an edge over Sunderland on the night. “I think that a lot of the time when you do play against mature athletes all the time, you're very, very stretched. So we like to categorise our areas of development.
“And I think that a stretch is really important. I think there's a level that you can go beyond that into stress, physically and technically. And I think when you're dealing so much with the physicality and coping, shall we say, development sometimes can take a backwards seat because you're so busy just coping.
“We like to vary ours where we get a bit of stretch, a bit of stress. And then we get a bit where we put a completely different psychological challenge in, in an area where they're expected to be the top player. We then expect them to perform. So when you're playing in games like this, I'm expecting them to be competitive. In games that aren't as intense or as technical as this, I'm expecting them to be really good. So the expectation level becomes different.
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“But I think talking to their coaching staff, they really like how much variety they're getting within their programme as well. And I think there are benefits to both. I would love the opportunity to put our young lads into a league against mature athletes. We don't have that facility in this country, unfortunately. I think it would be a really, really interesting experiment. And I think you would get the backing of many, many, many big clubs.”
Murty’s comments come after another encouraging display from Sunderland’s youngsters, who twice came from behind to earn a point in their Premier League International Cup opener. The visitors had taken an early lead through Ntanda Samuel after a handball against Archie Lightfoot, before Brobbey levelled with a smart finish following Harrison Jones’ pass. Joshua Bethuna’s long-range strike restored Anderlecht’s advantage before Tutierov equalised late on with a composed finish from Jack Whittaker’s through ball.
The draw leaves Sunderland with one point from their opening fixture in Group D, ahead of further tests against Sporting CP, Borussia Dortmund and Athletic Club Bilbao later in the competition. Sunderland’s under-21s return to action on Monday night when they travel to Nottingham Forest in Premier League 2.
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