Much more to Wyke’s game than goals amid drought
Max Power made a point of pinpointing the moment in his post-match media duties.
While it was the midfielder whonettedthecrucialthirdfor Sunderland in their win over Oxford United, his goal owed much to the work of Charlie Wyke.
The striker had shown persistencetowinbackpossession before then switching the play to Power with a fine pass – one which any creative midfielder would have been proud of.
This was another game where Wyke showed there is somuchmoretohisgamethan goals as he continues to form a key cog in a Sunderland side gearing-upforalatepromotion push.
Wyke has now gone three League One games without a goal, his longest drought since the turn of the year.
And while he will no doubt be keen to hit the goal trail again in the coming weeks, the 28-year-oldremainsavitalpart of the Black Cats’ promotion push even when not scoring.
Against the U’s, he once again proved a good foil for those around him with his offthe-ball work.
Wyke’s movement and physicality means he often tends to occupy defenders, creatingspaceforthosearound him. The likes of Lynden Gooch, Aiden McGeady and Jordan Jones all benefited from this as they exploited the space which Wyke had helped tocreatebymakingcleverruns and attracting the attention of the visiting centre backs.
As ever, Wyke was imperious in the air and scarcely gave away possession in the advanced areas. These small assets of Wyke’s game can oftengounnoticed,butareasimportantashisgoalsingamesof such a tight nature and will no doubt prove key in the final weeks of the campaign.