Sunderland midfielder Habib Diarra was in fine form against Burnley
The Senegalese international made his first start for the Black Cats since September, and wasted little time in imposing himself on the contest, taking the shot that led to Axel Tuanzebe’s early own goal opener, and doubling his side’s lead just after the half-hour mark.
Diarra also linked well with striker Brian Brobbey throughout his seventh appearance in red and white, with his debut campaign in England heavily disrupted thus far - first by injury, and then by a month-long absence at the African Cup of Nations.
But now that the 22-year-old is back on Wearside, Shearer has admitted that he was mightily impressed by what he saw of Sunderland’s record signing earlier this week. In his weekly Premier League Team of the Week column, the Newcastle United legend stated: "Showed what his club were missing while he was away at AFCON."
The rest of Shearer’s XI was comprised of Brentford trio Caoimhin Kelleher, Kristoffer Ajer, and Sepp van den Berg, Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate, Arsenal winger Noni Madueke, Bournemouth talent Alex Scott, Manchester United veteran Casemiro, Chelsea forward Joao Pedro, and Liverpool attacking duo Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike.
Elsewhere, BBC Sport pundit Troy Deeney also included Diarra in his Team of the Week, explaining: “It says a goal and an own goal, but it's basically two goals for him. He was exceptional. The wide players absolutely killed Burnley and he was at the heart of it.”
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What did Sunderland head coach Regis Le Bris say about Habib Diarra?
Speaking in a post-match press conference at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland boss Regis Le Bris was also quick to emphasise the impact that Diarra can make for the Black Cats over the remainder of the Premier League campaign.
He said: “It's a new signing for us. We spoke together this week about a new start. We supported him through his injury, then through AFCON and we were absolutely convinced that when he comes back with us, he will have the quality as a player, but he's really competitive as well. He wants to win, he wants to press, he wants to score and he gives us this energy, which is really important in this league.
“He was one of our first signings, so he set the tone for us when we decided to go with him and he agreed, obviously. He came late in the squad, but now I hope he will continue this kind of performances.”
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