View: Le Bris will be delighted with what 93% Sunderland ace did on int’l duty
Sunderland defender Dan Ballard was named as Northern Ireland’s Man of the Match in their 2-0 win over Belarus on Friday night.
Having just returned from a lengthy injury, Ballard was thrown straight into the deep end on international duty, starting for his nation and thriving on 15 November.
Regis Le Bris will be delighted with Ballard’s performance, which earned him the Man of the Match award as posted on the Northern Ireland on their official X account [15 November].
Dan Ballard performance is a positive for Sunderland
Having only featured a handful of times for Sunderland this season, it was perhaps a bold move for him to be named in the starting 11 although the decision paid off.
According to FotMob, Ballard recorded a remarkable 93 per cent pass accuracy from 57 attempted passes while having 68 touches of the ball.
One thing that has often been criticised of Ballard throughout his time on Wearside are his credentials as a ball playing defender, although they were on full show against Belarus.
Perhaps surprisingly, Ballard failed to win either of his aerial duels although his 63 per cent win rate in ground duels made up for it. With his involvement in eight of those, it was a unexpectedly busy performance for the defender.
Prior to his withdrawal in the 76th minute, Ballard was dribbled past on just one occasion, which demonstrates his ability to read the game and use his intelligence to nullify any attacking threat posed.
Of course, defensively wasn’t the only area that he shone on Friday night, with the 25-year-old also getting on the scoresheet as he netted the opening goal for his nation.
Ballard was able to get on the end of a corner and dispatch a header, with an xG (expected goals) value of 0.63 – another area he overperformed in.
His performance will not only please Le Bris, but also ease concerns with Ballard likely to be called upon against Millwall in the absence of Trai Hume.
In other Sunderland news, Premier League clubs will hold financial power over the Black Cats as speculation continues to surround Chris Rigg, Dan Plumley has said.
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