Patrick Roberts, Wilson Isidor and Luke O’Nien have all now missed from the spot this season, though Roberts did score his first effort. And though O’Nien’s was all too easily saved at the weekend, it should be said that he has previously been nerveless in taking a number of successful penalties in shootouts throughout his time on Wearside. So what do Sunderland do next? Though Régis Le Bris suggested afterwards that it had been agreed in the aftermath of the Burnley draw that O’Nien would take the next penalty, the disagreement on the pitch suggested it’s a discussion that needs revisiting this week. The confusion and uncertainty cannot help, and needs addressing before it becomes an issue in a considerably more important game.
Do Sunderland stick, or twist? Their issue is that there is lack of obvious contenders with strong record to fall back on. Alan Browne has scored five from six in his senior career making him a definite option, but his minutes have been relatively limited this season and so there are no guarantees he’ll be on the pitch next time Sunderland earn a spotkick. Eliezer Mayenda presents a similar conundrum.
Romaine Mundle was clearly keen to step up on Saturday and Jobe Bellingham is another that clearly has the temperament and growing experience to succeed, but neither have much of a record in senior football and a patchy one at youth level. All of which makes you wonder – did Sunderland miss a major opportunity on Saturday?
Isidor’s experience at Burnley was a bruising one and it he was clearly emotional in the immediate aftermath of the game, but told the local media just a few weeks later that he would be prepared to step up again. Before Turf Moor, his record had been quite brilliant per transfermarkt data. And it’s worth noting that his two penalties were probably the cleanest strikes of the five Sunderland have taken previously. What Burnley and James Trafford did well was research and note Isidor’s clear preference for shooting to the goalkeeper’s right. In hindsight, Isidor erred in going for the same place again second time around.
The relatively (at least in the context of a Championship season) low stakes of Saturday’s game surely presented the perfect opportunity to allow Isidor to draw a firm line under that Friday night in January. Now the next time he steps up he the pressure will have grown even further – do Sunderland really want to run the risk that this could be in a play-off situation?
O’Nien’s work ethic behind the scenes at the Academy of Light is well known to all and there’s no doubt that he’ll be putting in the extra hours in the days and weeks ahead. Isidor’s record remains by far the best across the squad, however, and giving him the chance to rebuild his confidence seems like the obvious move when clear alternatives are so few and far between.
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