Regis Le Bris makes Chris Rigg error after Sunderland defeat to Hull City
Regis Le Bris opted to start Chris Rigg in midfield again for Sunderland in their 1-0 home defeat to Hull and it appeared to be a mistake.
Off the back of a late defeat to Leeds United, the need for a win against Hull was amplified by the growing gap at the top of the Championship, though it wasn’t to be for the Black Cats.
Anthony Patterson’s own goal was the difference in the clash, piling more pressure on the Sunderland shot-stopper who has been under scrutiny as of late.
However, it appears it was the decision made elsewhere that had a bigger impact, and it is one that needs to be changed going forward.
Chris Rigg needs to be rested for Sunderland
Rigg’s appearance against the Tigers was his 30th of the season and his 28th start in that time frame at just 17 years old, and while he has impressed for Sunderland, changes need to be made.
For several weeks now, Rigg has shown signs of fatigue and yet Le Bris has continued to select him and it’s a huge risk to be doing so.
As has been seen with countless young players over the years, too much game time can be a negative and if you are to avoid burning a player out, rotation is a must.
| Championship 24/25 | Games | Goals | Assists | Passing |
| Chris Rigg | 30 | 4 | 1 | 573 (79.7%) |
This is the one position where Sunderland have options, with Milan Aleksic still rarely getting a look in at senior level despite showing plenty of good signs when he has featured.
With the next encounter not until next Friday (28 February), Le Bris simply has to rotate his squad to ensure everyone is at full capacity for the final run-in.
Sunderland set for Championship playoffs
While automatic promotion has been on the cards all season, those hopes are slowly but surely diminishing and it may be time to focus on gaining momentum for the playoffs.
At least on paper, Sunderland have some favourable fixtures to do just that but in order to get the most out of it, Le Bris has to give minutes to those who as of late, have found them hard to come by.
Eliezer Mayenda is another to have had gametime limited, and he simply has to start against Sheffield Wednesday next weekend.