PlayerWatch: Ballard is already proving his value – and can get better

When Tony Mowbray was discussing Luton’s Town progression up to fourth in the Championship table before his side’s meeting with The Hatters, the Sunderland boss highlighted their power and physicality up front.

In Carlton Morris, Rob Edwards’ side have a forward who has scored 16 league goals this season, while strike partner Elijah Adebayo is another imposing figure at 6ft 4in.

The pair are one of the main reasons why Luton have some of the best pressing stats in the Championship this season, allowing opponents an average of 8.71 passes per defensive action according to Wyscout (a metric which indicates how teams press, with a lower figure indicating a more aggressive press).

For context, Luton have the fourth lowest PPDA in the

Championship this term, behind Burnley, Sheffield United and Stoke City. Yet, for the most part, Sunderland dealt with that threat pretty well as the sides played out a 1-1 draw at the Stadium of Light.

Centre-back Daniel Ballard particularly stood out as he went up against Morris, with the centre-back winning all four of his defensive duels (according to Wyscout) when the ball was played forward to one of Luton’s frontmen.

Ballard, 23, has started 18 consecutive games for Sunderland since returning from a foot injury in December, while he continues to look like an excellent signing following his summer arrival from Arsenal for a reported fee of around £2million.

That transfer only happened after a move to Burnley fell through, with Sunderland taking their opportunity to sign a player who ticked a lot of boxes.

Not only was Ballard a good age with plenty of room to improve, he also had Championship experience after making 31 league appearances for Millwall last season.

That spell showed he had the physicality to excel in England’s second tier, while the centre-back has also demonstrated his composure in possession. Despite Luton’s organised press, Ballard completed 22 of his 30 attempted forward passes against The Hatters as Sunderland withstood the pressure.

After signing a three-year contract at the Stadium of Light, with a club option of a further year, the Black Cats will hope Ballard can progress even further on Wearside.

In spite of an early injury setback, the defender is already proving his value.