Black Cats frontman has plenty strings to his bow, Beale
NAZARIY Rusyn has more than one string to his bow according to Michael Beale who insisted, “he is right in my thoughts to play across the front three.”
The 25-year-old Ukranian scored Sunderland’s equaliser against Middlesbrough last time out and boss Beale liked what he saw.
Now the Black Cats take on Plymouth Argyle today in their latest Championship assignment, and Beale indicated Rusyn will be in the starting line-up.
“He is right in my thoughts to play across the front three, he’s a bit of a wide-man and not just a number nine,” Beale declared.
“It would be unfair of me to say that Naz is just a number nine because he likes to pull wide, he likes to dribble, and his energy is really good. You’re certainly going to see Rusyn playing over the next three games.”
A win against 15th-placed Plymouth at the Stadium of Light could lift Beale’s side into the top six.
Argyle lost 4-1 to Leeds United in the FA Cup in midweek, which was only their second defeat in their last 12 matches and their first this year, the other loss in that spell coming against Southampton in the Championship on December 29.
On Sunderland’s opponents today, Beale said: “They have done really well and they’re a dangerous team.
“They score a lot of goals, certainly at home and I thought over their two games with Leeds they have done well, but the game slipped away from them late on. “I think it’ll be a tough challenge. I think we’re at that stage of the season now where everyone’s playing for something.
“The Championship is one of those leagues where you get caught in either one end of the table or the other, so I think we are going to have to be at our best again.” Beale is settling down on Wearside
and is optimistic about the future.
He added: “We have a really vibrant young group with a lot of ambition so there’s a lot of excitement. There’s a lot of positivity in this building and a lot of these players have high hopes for the future.
“To manage and get to know the staff has been fantastic, I have to say.
“We have the stadium that sells the most seats in the league, and we have the biggest away following.
“Every time we play it’s a special day and I think that’s what you put across to this young group. We have 25 young players that have got a burning ambition for the future.
Beale concluded: “That’s such a positive environment to walk into every day and it’s important that we remember that and keep working because this is a special club and we’re lucky to be here.”
It would be unfair to say Naz is just a number nine because likes to pull wide, he likes to dribble Michael Beale