Two possible contenders for wing-back spot go head to head – but who wins out?
SUNDERLAND IN MARKET FOR NEW PLAYER TO GIVE HUME SOME COMPETITION
SUNDERLAND’S pursuit for a left wing-back could soon reach a conclusion, with either Luke Garbutt or Demetri Mitchell likely to be joining the club this summer.
The Black Cats have been searching for adequate competition for academy graduate Denver Hume since last summer - with Laurens De Bock ultimately failing to impress on loan, while Declan John failed to make a single appearance in the cutshort second half of the campaign.
But they have identified two fullbacks to consider bringing in.
Ex-Everton man Garbutt has been offered a deal, while Demetri Mitchell is said to have impressed while on trial with the club recently.
So what exactly will they offer the Black Cats?
LUKE GARBUTT
The 27-year-old is a free agent having left Everton where he graduated from the Toffees’ youth academy.
He spent last season on loan at Ipswich and despite receiving a contract offer to move to the Stadium of Light, the Harrogate-born defender is believed to be weighing up his options, with a permanent move to Portman Road one of them.
An attacking wing-back who can play higher up the field too, Garbutt impressed at Ipswich last term, making 30 appearances, netting six goals and creating three more.
A pacey, attack-minded wingback, Garbutt had a 70% pass completion rate, but only 23% of his crosses were accurate. He averaged 1.5 dribbles per game, with 58% of those successful.
Meanwhile, defensively, he averaged an impressive 5.57 interceptions per game, 2.95 clearances and won 59.1% of his defensive duels, and won 43.9% of his aerial duels.
DEMETRI MITCHELL
Much like Garbutt, and Hume, Mitchell is an attack-minded, pacey wing-back, and graduated from the Manchester United academy.
Younger than Garbutt, Mitchell is 23 and is also a free agent after leaving the Red Devils this summer.
At one point Mitchell was very highly thought of at Old Trafford, with former boss Jose Mourinho a particular fan. The youngster won the Man Utd Reserve Player of the Year in 2017-18, the same season he went on loan to Hearts for the first of two half-season loan spells that saw him make 34 appearances for the Scots when still in the top flight.
On his release from Manchester United this summer, Manchester Evening News reporter Dominic Booth said: “Mitchell suffered one or two key injuries and with players jumping ahead of him in the queue and little prospect of first-team football under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, it made sense to let him go.
“The Scottish league looked to be his level, so whether that means he can thrive in League One remains to be seen. Many Man United academy products like Mitchell tend to do well enough when they leave”
Mitchell, during both spells in the Scottish Premiership, completed 70% of his passes and 40% of his crosses. He averaged 5.13 dribbles per game with 60% successful. He managed just two goals, however, in comparison to Garbutt’s six.
Defensively, he made on average 5.25 interceptions per game, 2.01 clearances, won 54.8% of his defensive duels and 42.2% of aerial duels.
HOW DO THEIR STATS COMPARE
TO DENVER HUME?
So we’ve compared the two to each other, with Mitchell slightly edging the attacking stats, while Garbutt slightly edges the defensive side. But how do they compare to Sunderland’s current left wing-back Hume?
Looking solely at his stats from last season, attacking wise, Hume completed 66% of his passes, and 30.8% of his crosses. He also averaged 5.88 dribbles, of which 63.6% were successful. Defensively, a part of his game he admits needs work on, Hume averages 3.74 interceptions per game and 1.23 clearances. He won 52.4% of his defensive duels and 32.4% of his aerial duels. His stats are closer to those of Mitchell’s in the Scottish Premiership.
SO WHO IS THE BETTER OPTION? That will depend on what Sunderland are looking for. Are they looking for a new first-choice wing-back to come in ahead of Hume? Or would they prefer back-up/competition?
One thing to note is Garbutt’s considerable experience in comparison to Mitchell. In total, Garbutt has made 176 appearances in senior football, playing across all four tiers of English professional football, and even making five appearances in the Europa League.
Mitchell has made just 35 senior career appearances.
Garbutt also has that League One experience which could make him more suitable, although depending on your thoughts on the Scottish top flight, you may be inclined to believe Mitchell shining at Hearts makes him a more attractive proposition.
Mitchell’s injuries are of concern. He suffered a knee injury in his first Hearts spell that was supposed to end his season. He ultimately recovered early to play the last two games of the campaign, before returning that summer for what was meant to be a full season in 2018-19.
However, he suffered a recurrence of the knee injury in February 2019 and it ended his loan as he was forced to go under the knife. He then spent all of last season trying to return to fitness but suffered a number of setbacks in those attempts, which ultimately led to his release.
Mitchell is likely to be the cheaper of the pair in terms of wages, which could be important given the recent salary caps that were introduced.
He is the most likely to accept that he is competition for Hume too, with Garbutt likely to expect to be regular first-choice wing-back.
Of course, any place in the team needs to be earned and Hume’s form was indifferent at times last season, potentially because of a lack of competition.
It’s likely no coincidence that his best Sunderland form came in the 2018-19 season when he was playing so well he keeping Costa Rica international Bryan Oviedo out the side.
Again, during Sunderland’s great run in January, when the Black Cats were actively in the market for a new left wing-back, Hume shone under Parkinson and netted his first senior goal in the thrashing of promoted Wycombe Wanderers.
In conclusion, both would fit the bill to finally end Sunderland’s struggles to fill that second left full-back squad place. While Garbutt brings experience and something different to Hume with more of a goal threat and more solid defensive stats, Mitchell offers something more similar to what they know works from Hume, while he is likely to be hungry to succeed on Wearside – as was reportedly evidenced during his spell on trial to try and earn a deal.