Sunderland have been linked with a move for Charlie Gray in recent days
How do you replace a talent like Jobe Bellingham? It is a question that Sunderland will presumably be asking themselves sooner rather than later.
The teenager midfielder looks to be edging ever closer to a club record departure, and if/when his transfer to Borussia Dortmund is finalised, the Black Cats will be left with a sizeable chasm in the centre of the park that they need to plug.
To that end, one potential option, according to Alan Nixon, could be Manchester City starlet Charlie Gray. The 19-year-old is entering the final year of his contract at the Etihad and is understood to be open to the prospect of a move away from his boyhood club it if it provides him with a clearer pathway towards regular first team football. For their part, City are said to be reluctant to sell, but could be tempted into a deal if it includes a decent fee and a healthy sell-on clause.
But who is Gray, and could he really be the Bellingham alternative that Sunderland are likely to need heading into a long-awaited return to the Premier League? Here’s everything you need to know...
Who is reported Sunderland target Charlie Gray?
Gray is a central midfielder who is currently on the books at Manchester City, having risen through the ranks of the Premier League giant’s oft-celebrated academy system. At 19 years of age, he is a little under six months younger than Bellingham, and has impressed for City’s U21s in the Premier League 2 and UEFA Youth League this season.
Over the course of 29 outings in all competitions, he has registered eight goals and an assist, and tends to operate in a slightly deeper midfield role, but also possesses the capability to play in a more advanced position too.
The teenager has never been used by Pep Guardiola at senior level, but was voted the EDS Players’ Player of the Year in Manchester this term, and is described as “a calming presence in the centre of midfield with an excellent range of passing” by City’s official website.
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Moreover, Joe Bray of the Manchester Evening News has claimed that Gray “could be one to watch next season”, adding that City’s “first team have notoriously struggled to find a solution at the base of midfield, and while Rodri is now back, maybe Pep Guardiola’s demands for a smaller squad and acceptance that he will have to use the academy if needed could play into the hands of some of these youngsters.” Bray also states that the starlet is “more of a Fernandinho in stature and maybe closer to Bernardo Silva in tenacity.”
And while it is worth reiterating that Gray is still yet to test his mettle in senior football, his performances for City’s U21s would suggest that he is a player of some potential. According to stats database Wyscout, for instance, the midfielder has averaged a pass completion rate of 90.1% this season, outstripping Bellingham in both the number of passes he has attempted and the frequency with which he finds his man. Gray’s shot accuracy is also some 32.4% higher than the Sunderland talisman’s, he embarks on more dribbles per 90 minutes, and his duel win ratio is 6.8% better too.
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